The past should be left in the past and shouldn’t be used to tar a charitable person’s reputation. At least that’s the signal some internet some users sent after learning that a reporter dug up dirt on a charitable person who raised a massive amount of money to charity.
Reporter Aaron Calvin found out that Carson King, who raised more than 2.2 million dollars for a children’s hospital, had made incredibly racist jokes from 8 years ago when he was a dumb teenager. Some internet users thought that this was unethical reporting and dug up unpleasant things from Calvin’s past in response. In an ironic twist, Calvin ended up getting fired at the Des Moines Register over the offensive social media posts he made himself.
Carson King received massive amounts of money after showing up with this sign
He decided to use this money for good
Image credits: CarsonKing2
King thought that donating his newly-acquired riches to a children's hospital would be the best decision
King's story went viral and everyone started writing about it, including Aaron Calvin from the Des Moines Register
Image credits: CarsonKing2
Calvin found out King had made racist jokes when he was a teenager; the latter officially apologized for his past mistakes
Image credits: CarsonKing2
Image credits: CarsonKing2
King thanked everyone for their support
Some internet users found the 'attack' on King's character distasteful and started digging up dirt on the reporter
Image credits: Austin_712
The reporter had made plenty of offensive posts himself...
...and got fired over them
Image credits: DMRegister
Image credits: Austin_712
Image credits: KimReynoldsIA
The entire situation is a bit complicated and full of rampant emotions, so it’s best to summarize what happened. King, who is 24, became flush with cash after bringing a funny sign about needing more beer (“Busch Light Supply Needs Replenished”) to College Gameday.
Out of the goodness of his heart, King decided to donate almost all of the money to a children’s hospital. That’s where the brewing company Anheuser-Busch comes in, stating that it’s going to donate as well.
The story then goes viral, and one of the people who wrote about it was Calvin from the Des Moines Register. While doing a background check on King, he finds that he had made racist jokes when he was 16. Calvin includes this info in the article about King, leading to Anheuser-Busch cutting off ties with the latter.
Now, some people thought that bringing up dirt in an article meant to celebrate a person’s generosity was a low blow. So they started digging up dirt on Calvin, including all the offensive things he’s ever said about any group. The Des Moines Register ended up firing Calvin over his comments.
"We took appropriate action because there is nothing more important in journalism than having readers' trust," the Executive Editor of the Des Moines Register Carol Hunter wrote in an opinion piece when she responded to the outrage to the original story. “That reporter is no longer with the Register."
The controversy didn’t stop people from supporting King and helping him raise money for charity. At the start of this week, donations soared through the roof, reaching more than 2.2 million dollars.
Dear Readers, what do you think about this entire situation? Do you think that Calvin publishing mistakes that King did 8 years ago was the right thing to do? What do you think about internet users then digging up dirt on Calvin? Do you think Calvin deserved to lose his job? Share your thoughts in the comments.
Here's how some internet users reacted to the entire story
