The Surprising Crud Journalists Sometimes Deal With...

It's a stinky job (sometimes)...but somebody's gotta do it.

Recently a viewer called our station telling us about some horrible living conditions she'd been struggling with. Ranging from plumbing problems that ended up in her entire bathroom covered in human feces. Yes, human feces were clogging this couple's shower and toilet.

She'd also used 20 something towels to try and contain the mess and when we walked into the hallway from her bathroom, she opened the door to show me the piles of mouse droppings covering the floor. A mixture of dirt and mouse residue...then the tour continued to her kitchen where within seconds, cockroaches were seen scampering up and down her walls and all throughout her dishwasher and sink.
YUCK!

After visiting this particular tenant, we made numerous attempts to reach her landlord. All of those calls went unanswered, but there was a particularly "upset" message left by an anonymous caller saying we didn't have the other story.

So, after a few calls--we went back out to visit with this landlord who owns several other properties in town. He and his assistant introduced themselves and at first seemed to be pretty professional about the issue.
This professionalism quickly disappeared and we were told we had to interview numerous residents who they said "really wanted talk on camera." I have a hard time believing anyone would want to be videotaped while answering questions about their boss or landlord-who's standing just a few feet away.


Nevertheless, we interviewed one of the girls, who didn't seem like she wanted to on camera at all. When I returned to the station, a fellow reporter informed me the "tenant" management wanted me to interview didn't live there at all.

So, who do you believe? Who takes responsibility for the entire "cruddy" situation?Video doesn't lie...When you claim to take ownership in something, it's your job to make sure you take FULL responsibility for any issues that come up. I'll say this though, management aren't house keepers and they aren't responsible for any dirt problems that arise from not cleaning. A backed up toilet and shower full of poo--ya, maintenance you need to take care of that, especially when it's a 1-bedroom apartment.

Yuck.