Dilution of Accountability and Transparency in the Flint Water Crisis: A Case of Institutional Implosion

Abstract

This article examines two major institutions widely touted in the United States as servants to communities and the general public: the government and the news media. The Flint water crisis is a textbook case in which these two institutions failed to live up to their responsibilities of accountability and transparency. The authors examine the major events during the water crisis, looking at it through the lens of government actions and how the press covered them, conducting qualitative context analysis during the first five months of the crisis. The analysis includes the actions of federal, state, and local agencies and the reporting of national, state, and local newspapers. Their findings show that the institutions completely imploded, with an impact on thousands of residents, many of whom happened to be minorities. resumen Este trabajo analiza la labor de dos grandes instituciones que prestan servicio a las comunidades y a la sociedad en general en Estados Unidos: el gobierno y los medios de comunicación. La crisis del agua Flint es un caso de libro de texto que muestra cómo estas dos instituciones incumplieron sus responsabilidades de transparencia y rendición de cuentas. Los autores examinan los principales sucesos ocurridos durante la crisis del agua, observándolos a través de la lente de las acciones gubernamentales y la cobertura que les dio la prensa, realizando un análisis cualitativo de contexto de los primeros cinco meses de la crisis. Tal estudio incluye las acciones de las agencias federales, estatales y locales, y cómo fue tratado en la prensa a nivel nacional, estatal y local. Los hallazgos muestran que hubo una absoluta implosión institucional que impactó a miles de residentes -muchos de los cuales resultaron pertenecer a minorías-.Palabras clave: rendición de cuentas, transparencia, gobierno prensa, crisis agua.

Digital Government for Anti Corruption: A Systematic Literature Review

“…As a result, the Flint water crisis resulted in criminal and civil charges, which are still pending and increasing. The media's response to this problem is to present the topic of the water crisis first and foremost as a governance issue involving accountability, transparency, and asking the Michigan government to respond more quickly as part of its emergency response work (Chavez et al, 2017).…”

Toward In-Depth Coverage: Testing the Effectiveness of a Single-Issue Multimedia Course for Undergraduate Public Affairs Reporting

“…Failure to represent community voices is a systemic problem within journalism norms and is perpetuated, in part, by journalism schools, when coursework emphasizes the importance of official sources to provide credibility (Wahl-Jorgensen & Hanitzsch, 2009). Such source reliance is shown to marginalize community voices and can have serious consequences when concerns of community members are left unaddressed (Boyle et al, 2012; Chavez et al, 2017). Establishing relationships with community members plays an essential role in generating representative sources, as community members feel more comfortable discussing issues with reporters they consider trustworthy (Ford et al, 2020).…”

Water Crisis In Flint Michigan – A Case Study

“…One of the most significant findings was that there is an ongoing lack of communication with the community and government officials. One issue that needs to be addressed is the "Watchdog Media" as explained in an article by Chavez, Perez, Tunney, & Nunez (2017). Simply stated is the need for information that is being reported to governmental officials should be given to the public.…”

“…This could have been avoided with oversight. "The case of the water crisis in Flint, Michigan, may demonstrate failures in the both the media watchdog function and governmental institutions over the period leading up to the exposure of lead leaching into the homes of the city's water" (Chavez et al 2017). The FWTF addressed the City of Flint as indicated in Table 8.…”