Thread by @roddreher

I have a sincere request for folks who reach out, or who are thinking of reaching out, to journalists with their own stories of clerical abuse, corruption, etc. Journalists reporting on this are eager to hear your stories if you have good information /more

It can be helpful to have background info, to better understand what's happening in a given situation. But here's what's really frustrating, esp for journalists (like me) who want to see bad things end and good things happen /more

I can't tell you how many e-mails I've rec'd over the years covering the Catholic Church scandal from people -- priests and laity -- who have seen and lived with corruption and abuse, and who are sincerely desperate for things to change, and who say, in the end, /more

"SOMEBODY NEEDS TO DO SOMETHING TO MAKE IT STOP!" Well, yes, they do. Journalists can be a key resource by investigating and publicizing misconduct, even crimes. **But we can't do it unless sources are willing to go on the record, and/or provide documents.** /more

This is one reason McCarrick got away with it for so long: those who had direct knowledge of his abuse were happy to tell reporters about it, but not on the record, or provide documents. And so we couldn't do anything. It tore me up as a Catholic, knowing that McCarrick /more

was guilty -- he had a prominent conservative figure call my editor in early 2002, concede that McCarrick was guilty of sexually harassing seminarians, and ask my editor to take me off the story -- but to not be able to do anything about it because none of my sources /more

would go on the record. It became a wearying ritual:

"Now that I've told you my story, I hope you'll agree that somebody needs to do something about Cardinal McCarrick."

"I can't write anything unless people go on the record."

"I can't do that, because ____." /more

Over and over again. And not just on McCarrick. It's happening again with the Diocese of Lincoln, which I started writing about a week ago. E-mails coming in from folks in Lincoln, talking about how abusive clerical behavior has long been covered up by diocese and /more

laity who wanted to believe in the myth that they lived in a perfect island of conservative, orthodox Catholicism, untouched by scandal. It wasn't true, and ppl have real stories to tell about how they were silenced by bishop, priests, and culture of laity. /more

Folks are sick of it, as they should be! They've really suffered, and suffered in silence. They want it to end ... but they want somebody else to end it for them, so they don't have to take a risk. They don't want priests and fellow parishioners to think badly of them /more

and they don't want to alienate friends and family. But they want somebody else to take the risks. Look, I get this. Honestly, I do. It's hard to stand up and tell the truth, esp when it could make you a pariah. But that's the ONLY way things are going to change! /more

So, I don't want to be an unsympathetic listener, but we reporters are often inundated with stories of "please help, but leave my name out of it." Good reporters will protect the names of actual abuse victims. But if you're not, and you still have a story of serious /more

clerical corruption and wrongdoing to tell, please -- please! -- think hard about taking the risk to putting your name out there, and taking a public stand. Yes, it will be hard. But again: nothing will change until and unless you are willing to take responsibility /more

and not just wait for somebody else to come in and save you. The Pope is not going to do it. Your bishop is not going to do it. The media might have a role to play in creating the conditions under which the corruption can be exposed and remedied, but /more

our abilities are limited by professional standards and libel law. If you want truth, justice, and reform, then stand up and speak out without fear. "Somebody needs to do something," yes -- and maybe that somebody is you. If not you, then who? /END