✕ Sensationalism [4/10]: The headline emphasizes a personal failing ('cocaine use') as the central reason for missing out on a job, implying causation without confirmation, which risks sensationalism.

"Senior public servant misses out on top job after anonymous tipster reveals prior cocaine use"

✕ Headline / Body Mismatch [5/10]: The headline frames the story around scandal and personal history rather than systemic issues like integrity policies or appointment processes.

"Senior public servant misses out on top job after anonymous tip setter reveals prior cocaine use"

✕ Loaded Adjectives [7/10]: Use of 'disgraced' to describe former Deputy Police Commissioner McSkimming introduces a value-laden term not applied consistently to the current subject.

"the Public Service's report regarding disgraced former Deputy Police Commissioner Jevon McSkimming"

✕ Euphemism [9/10]: The phrase 'tried drugs' is neutral and non-sensational, used in direct reference to the subject’s own disclosure.

"on one occasion she did try drugs"

✕ Passive-Voice Agency Obfuscation [5/10]: Repeated use of passive voice obscures agency in decision-making (e.g., 'was replaced', 'was appointed')

"the staffer had been investigated"

✕ Anonymous Source Overuse [6/10]: Heavy reliance on anonymous tips and unnamed institutional responses undermines transparency about who is making decisions and why.

"RNZ was told the staffer had been investigated over allegations she had used cocaine."

✕ Vague Attribution [5/10]: The organisation’s integrity team contacted an anonymous Proton email account but received no response, yet the investigation proceeded — a fact reported without critical scrutiny.

"The organisation's integrity team contacted the email account to seek further information, but no response was received."

✓ Comprehensive Sourcing [9/10]: Includes a qualified, balanced perspective from a leading employment lawyer, adding professional credibility and nuance.

"One of the country's leading employment lawyers Barbara Buckett said while she was unable to comment on any individual appointment, the issue was 'complex and multifaceted'."

✓ Proper Attribution [9/10]: Properly attributes statements to a named expert with relevant credentials, enhancing trustworthiness.

"One of the country's leading employment lawyers Barbara Buckett said..."

✕ Narrative Framing [6/10]: The story is framed around a personal scandal — a single past act undermining a career — rather than examining institutional decision-making or integrity frameworks.

"Senior public servant misses out on top job after anonymous tipster reveals prior cocaine use"

✕ Episodic Framing [5/10]: Focuses on the drama of appointment reversal without confirming whether drug use was the actual cause, leaning into episodic rather than systemic analysis.

"Then, about two weeks after RNZ approached the organisation, the chief executive emailed staff to say that another woman had been appointed acting chief executive."

✓ Steelmanning [8/10]: The article includes a fair and nuanced take from an employment lawyer, representing complexity in appointment standards.

"As every appointment will depend on the circumstances of the previous connection with drug use and whether it undermines suitability and that confidence to oversee the public entity concerned."