The first task I’d do is verify the authenticity of the video that shows the prominent minister with a drink in his hand and hanging out with scantily clad women. There are a couple of ways the video could be verified. Obviously, the first way would be to call the minister and ask him directly. But I’d want to do more reporting first before contacting him. So, I’d call the bar manager and/or owner and ask if the minister had been hanging out at the bar that day. Also, I’d ask the bar manager about the identities of the women in case he or she knows. Are they mistresses? Prostitutes? Friends? Perhaps the bar owner knows. I’d also ask to speak to any patrons who are still at the bar who may know who the minister is. If I don’t have any luck getting the bar manager/owner on the phone, I’d go visit the bar. Who knows? Maybe the minister is still hanging out at the place. If I’m able to verify the video’s authenticity, then I’d go to my assignment desk editor and let him or her about the video. From there, we’d determine how we want to proceed. We would need to call the minister to get comment from him and find out who the women were. Also, the station would probably want to check for any previous footage of the minister that shows him preaching on the virtues of marriage. I think we should air the video if we can get comment from the minister whether it’s on or off camera.
