Story highlights The newspaper quickly pulls map

It showed schools that the paper said did not have security officers

Expert calls the map a "lapse of good judgment"

An Iowa newspaper caught some flak this week for posting a map of area schools that did and did not have campus security officers.

The Des Moines Register newspaper said it was trying to shed a light on school safety when it published the article online Wednesday.

But after criticism, the article was taken down after 30 minutes, according to Rick Green, the newspaper's vice president.

"The horrific Sandy Hook tragedy has forced all of us in the media, including the Register, to be even more thoughtful about how we approach our reporting and presentation on matters related to guns, crime, schools and student safety," Green said. "We must responsibly balance the important role we play in illuminating taxpayers and the public about school spending and security while also doing absolutely nothing that jeopardizes the safety of students and teachers. My staff knows that."

Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Children in Newtown, Connecticut, return to school on December 18, 2012, four days after the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School. Hide Caption 1 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Connecticut State Police officers search outside St. Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church in Newtown, Connecticut, on Tuesday, December 16, after a threat prompted authorities to evacuate the building. Investigators found nothing to substantiate the reported threat, a police official said, declining to provide additional details. The church held Sunday services following the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown. Hide Caption 2 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Connecticut State Police officers walk out of St. Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church after the Newtown church received a threat December 16. Hide Caption 3 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Firefighters attach black bunting to a fire truck as a memorial at the fire station down the street from the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, on Saturday, December 15. Hide Caption 4 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Connecticut Chief Medical Examiner H. Wayne Carver II talks to the media about the elementary school shooting during a press conference at Treadwell Memorial Park on December 15. Hide Caption 5 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Zulma Sein is hugged by a family member outside of the entrance to the Sandy Hook School on Saturday. Hide Caption 6 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Police officers keep guard at the entrance to the street leading to the Sandy Hook Elementary School on Saturday, December 15. Hide Caption 7 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Connecticut State Police Lt. Paul Vance addresses the press on December 15. Hide Caption 8 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Police officers stand at the entrance to the street leading to the Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 15. Hide Caption 9 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Corinne McLaughlin, a student at the University of Hartford, bows her head during a candlelight vigil at Hartford, Connecticut's Bushnell Park on Friday, December 14, honoring the students and teachers who died at Sandy Hook Elementary School in nearby Newtown earlier in the day. Hide Caption 10 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Distraught people leave the fire station after hearing news of their loved ones from officials on Friday. Hide Caption 11 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Emergency workers stand in front of the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown. Hide Caption 12 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – A child and her mother leave a staging area outside Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, on December 14. Hide Caption 13 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Members of the media converge on December 14 in front of an apartment at 1313 Grand Street in Hoboken, New Jersey. The apartment is believed to be connected to the Connecticut elementary school shooting. Hide Caption 14 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Faisal Ali, right, of Colorado Springs, Colorado, joins other people outside the White House on December 14 to participate in a candlelight vigil to remember the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. Hide Caption 15 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Connecticut State Police spokesman Lt. J. Paul Vance, center, briefs the media on the elementary school shootings during a press conference at Treadwell Memorial Park on December 14 in Newtown. Hide Caption 16 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – People weep and embrace near Sandy Hook Elementary School on Friday, December 14. Hide Caption 17 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – A woman leans on a man as she weeps near Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 18 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – President Barack Obama wipes a tear as he speaks about the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School during a press briefing at the White House on December 14. Hide Caption 19 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – A woman weeps near the site of a shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 20 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – A woman weeps near Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 21 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – People comfort each other near Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 22 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – A man takes in the scene near Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 23 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – A young girl is given a blanket after being evacuated from Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 24 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – State police personnel lead children from the school. Hide Caption 25 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Children wait outside Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, after the shooting. Hide Caption 26 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – A boy weeps at Reed Intermediate School after getting news of the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 27 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – FBI SWAT team members walk along Dickinson Drive near Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 28 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – An aerial view of Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut on December 14. Hide Caption 29 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Connecticut State Troopers arrive on the scene outside Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 30 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – A Connecticut State Police officer runs with a shotgun at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown on December 14. Hide Caption 31 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Police patrol the streets around Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 32 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – People try to deal with the shock of the attack outside Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 33 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – Connecticut State Police secure the scene of the shooting on December 14. Hide Caption 34 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – People embrace outside Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 35 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – A man escorts his son away from Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 36 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – People take in the news outside Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 37 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – People line up to enter Newtown Methodist Church near the the scene of the shooting on December 14. Hide Caption 38 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – A woman speaks with a Connecticut state trooper outside Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 39 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – The streets around Sandy Hook Elementary are packed with first responders and other vehicles. Hide Caption 40 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – A view of the scene at Sandy Hook Elementary School after the shooting. Hide Caption 41 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – A young boy is comforted outside Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14. Hide Caption 42 of 43 Photos: Photos: Newtown school shooting Newtown school shooting – People embrace each other on December 14. Hide Caption 43 of 43

The story had an interactive map that showed which schools were staffed with resource officers, Green said.

But the article made an error when it did not list that some school districts that do not have resource officers "still have some local public safety presence at various times in the form of county sheriff deputies or police officers," he said.

Charles Segars, a safety and security expert, said printing the map was a "lapse of good judgment."

"It is difficult to understand why the Des Moines Register would publish an interactive map that identifies names and locations of schools in which our children are most vulnerable to potential attack," Segars said.

However, Green contradicted his assertion, saying the map did not list the names or addresses of the schools.

Green said his paper got angry phone calls but they listened to the criticism.

"When criticism was raised from readers, we listened and responded," Green said.

This is not the first newspaper to stir up criticism while reporting about gun issues.