ABC News aired a report Friday about nuclear reactors on college campuses and security. Their investigation highlighted what the network called "gaping security holes," including at Penn State's own Breazeale reactor.

Penn State will examine procedures at the reactor but does not plan to make any changes, spokesman Bill Mahon said. And ABC's report did not highlight any specific issues at the reactor here.

Though national security is important, ABC News used Americans' fear of terrorism to blow the danger out of proportion. Most reactors on college campuses are small and are only used for research. Breazeale Director C. Frederick Sears said most commercial reactors produce between 2,000 and 4,000 megawatts, while university reactors range from producing a fraction of a megawatt to about 10. Penn State's reactor produces one megawatt.

Such a small output of energy requires little radioactive material. The explosion from a bomb at the reactor would be more dangerous than the radioactive material there, said Sarma Pisupati, associate professor of energy and geo-environmental engineering.

ABC News' Web site called university nuclear reactors "The New Terror Threat." This investigation is part of a series examining nuclear weapons and terrorism called "Loose Nukes."

ABC undermined its investigative report by sensationalizing the news. The main page of the university investigation does not mention the small output of university reactors or the relatively small amount of radioactive material found at them. In fact, the main Web page does not mention anything reassuring at all.

Investigative journalism can play an essential role in verifying that regulatory agencies are doing their jobs, but the impact can be lost in the presentation. Such hyped news makes the public question the validity of the findings. Language such as "gaping security holes" and "the new terror threat" scares the audience rather than presents a balanced look at the problem.

The network did serve as the impetus for Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the agency which oversees university reactors, to open investigations into at least five of the schools. After reading and listening to all of the information from the investigation, ABC was finally able to put into context the real danger of university reactors. The message is that a security concern could exist, but that most are too small to present a great threat.

The problem is the presentation. The public should not have to sift through to find the few nuggets of wisdom among sensational language and reporting. Investigative journalism has its place in this country, but sensationalism does not.