A story about Black women and crime was stolen; here's why it matters

CHICAGO (CBS) -- A recent online story delivered a stunning account of Chicago crime that could have widespread implications for public safety and public policy.

The story, written by Srdjan Ilic for a site called Southwest Journal, found that Black women in Chicago were disproportionally more likely to be victims of violent crime. The story was filled with insightful data analysis and interviews with victims and public policy experts. 

There was only one problem: Srdjan Ilic stole the entire story -- from the data that took weeks to gather to the interviews -- from CBS 2. 

According to his biography on the Southwest Journal, Ilic is not a reporter. He has no connections to Chicago, although he says he did spend two years "in Ocean City, USA," along with "extensive travels in Canada."  The Southwest Journal's business operations are in Serbia.  

Cash for clicks and a Google ranking

Ilic is a self-proclaimed "SEO strategist and content creator."  He aims to optimize content for high-ranking results on search engines like Google and then make money off the traffic sent to his site. 

In this case, it worked. A public relations official for an alderperson in Chicago told CBS 2 that Ilic's "story" was the top result when he searched for "Black women crime Chicago."

It was initially cited in a news release from Ald. Stephanie Coleman. She wants a task force to investigate the disturbing trend. Coleman told CBS 2 that she was already fully aware of CBS 2's reporting on the topic. The release was subsequently corrected. 

CBS 2's reporting has not only gotten the attention of local lawmakers. The stories have spurred a call to action from prominent members of the Black community.  

What's at stake

So, why does this matter? 

There are business and ethical issues at stake. More importantly, it affects how the public is informed. 

From a business standpoint, the value of the original reporter's work is diluted in terms of distribution of the original content, lost revenue, and copyright violations.

It's difficult for news publishers to track, said Alex Mahadevan, the director of MediaWise at the Poynter Institute, who teaches digital media literacy.

"Unfortunately, news organizations are struggling with resources just to keep doing the great reporting they do," Mahadevan said. "So it's hard to take legal action against this kind of thing. Google's algorithm is supposed to prioritize factual, original reporting, so I'd say this is an issue with their algorithm that needs to be addressed. News organizations can get out in front of this as well, and do some stories about these types of "pink slime" news sites."

Ethically, readers of this content are being informed deceptively. Even if the poached story is accurate, how can readers trust it? 

"The biggest risk is not getting the facts," Mahadevan said. "Sketchy news sites have no editorial standards or ethical guidelines. They aren't bound by the facts the way legitimate news sites are. And misinformation is incredibly dangerous. During COVID-19 we saw it was incredibly damaging to public health. It can influence how you vote."

Mahadevan said news consumers can employ some skills when reading online. 

"There are two great media literacy skills you can employ when you're checking out something like the Southwest Journal — and, importantly — looking for legitimate local reporting," he said. 

"First, you need to practice click restraint. You need to do the opposite of what the alderperson's PR person did: Don't click the first thing you see in search results. Restrain yourself. Scan the results for news organizations you recognize — like CBS News Chicago. And if you don't recognize a source, do some lateral reading. Open a new tab and Google the name of the "news" outlet to see if they're legit. Look for a Wikipedia page on them. I can't find anything about the Southwest Journal. Instead of reading vertically. Open tabs, do some searches for more information, and read laterally."

An editorial policy

The Southwest Journal's editorial policy states: "We are committed to upholding the highest standards of journalism and integrity in our content. Our editorial policy reflects our dedication to accuracy, diversity, and engagement with our readers.

"Our content is original and crafted to resonate with the unique voice and ethos of Southwest Journal."

CBS 2 emailed Southwest Journal asking its editors to explain how their editorial policy squares with the publication of Ilic's story. Southwest Journal has yet to respond.