By James Wilt
On November 11th, 2009, the Calgary Herald published an article titled ‘Downturn helps unmask mortgage fraud in Alberta’, with the byline of ‘Reports ‘tip of the iceberg,’ says detective’. Authored by Calgary Herald reporter Stephane Massinon (who also wrote the article I analyzed on October 24th, 2009), the article outlined the results of a recent investigation conducted by the Alberta Mortgage Fraud Symposium regarding the increasing amount of mortgage fraud, which is frequently tied to drug grow operations and organized crime (or gangs).
The results of the study indicated that the problem is on the rise, which was affirmed by the quote contributed by a detective in the economic crimes unit of the Calgary Police Force: "We are getting numerous reports coming in; I think it's just the tip of the iceberg". To validate the leading claim, Massinon utilized quotes from a detective in the economic crimes unit of the CPS, a Calgary-based RCMP Sergeant, and Scotiabank’s manager of fraud protection. In addition, Massinon detailed the procedure through which perpetrators commit mortgage fraud, and how the problem is affecting the housing market as a whole.
From an analytical perspective, Stephane Massinon’s article was excellently constructed and written. The reporter managed to maintain an extremely objective, fact-based point of view, and provided the reader an abundant amount of information (which consisted of quotes and situation details) to completely understand the issue.
One of the more impressive elements of the articles was the fact that Massinon provided the reasons, current situation, and potential complications in solving the issue, which gave the layman reader an all rounded concept of the escalating problem. The only improvement that Massinon could make would be to include quantitative data through the means of statistics or graphs, which would increase the ability for the reader to grasp the content.
In conclusion, Massionon’s news article was a very good report on the current problems in Alberta regarding mortgage fraud and organized gang involvement. He successfully maintained objectivity throughout the entire piece, which resulted in the effective communication of the information. As stated, the one improvement that could be made would be to include quantitative information.
Massinon, S. (2009, November 11). Downturn helps unmask mortgage fraud in Alberta [Electronic version]. Calgary Herald.
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