Students at a top-rated Massachusetts public high school are blasting WFXT and investigative reporter Mike Beaudet for confronting a teacher about his apparent porn star past.
In a story that first aired during the Fox O&O’s 6 p.m. newscast on Tuesday, Beaudet confronted Kevin Hogan, an English teacher and crew coach at Mystic Valley Regional Charter School, about his alleged appearances in at least three gay porn videos.
After being ambushed by Beaudet in a parking lot, Hogan told the reporter that he didn’t know what he was talking about (video inside). Mystic Valley has placed Hogan, who chairs the school’s English department, on paid leave as it looks into WFXT’s allegations.
Since the story first aired, Beaudet and WFXT have been heavily criticized by students at the school, who have banded together in support of Hogan.
On Twitter, Beaudet asked Mystic Valley students for their response to his story. Here’s what one student tweeted back…
Another student tweeted at Beaudet: “Hogan is the best thing that has happened to my crew team. Students now have more respect for him due to what you did #thanks”
“It’s not like he was doing anything illegal,” one student tweeted, “he shouldn’t get fired.”
“Reporters are so fucking annoying,” tweeted another student.
And one young man seemed to sum up the general reaction from the Mystic Valley student body, tweeting…
A petition in support of Hogan, who joined Mystic Valley in August, is now reportedly being circulated at the school.
While a handful of parents Beaudet spoke to for his story voiced concern about a teacher having a pornographic past, an overwhelming majority of viewers believe WFXT went too far.
“I just saw your story on Kevin Hogan and found it to be in very bad taste,” one viewer wrote in a letter to the station, which WFXT commentator Doug VB Goudie read on-air during today’s morning newscast. “If he loses his job, someone at Fox should lose their job or better yet support him going forward. It is lazy and sloppy and has negative consequences for him–it should for you as well.”
Goudie estimated that viewer feedback has been split 80/20, with 80% of viewers “against us.”
Here’s the original story…