On August 26th, reporter Allison Parker and cameraman Adam Ward were shot during a live interview in Moneta, Virginia. Upon hearing this news and discussing it in every class this week, I am more terrified than ever because of the state of violence this country is in. As a broadcasting major I am taught how to operate a camera, to look slightly past it when doing a stand-up, and to speak in an active voice not a passive one, but I am not taught how to avoid a situation like this. An immediate escape to this situation is nearly impossible, but a change to the current media culture may lessen the possibility of these situations.
One of the main goals of many individuals who decide to take another’s life, is a platform to broadcast their “injustice”. It is often done to publicly right a wrong. A question to consider is: Would this person have committed this crime if their name and actions would have remained unknown to the public? The current agenda of the media gives these individuals their desires. We want to inform and we want viewers and we want advertisers. A combination of these three things calls us to include the name and motivation of a killer. People want to know these facts, and will tune in to find them out. But are the inclusion of these facts contributing to the "public interest, convenience and necessity” that we are all called to foster our broadcast to?
Throughout the past few days there have been an uncountable amount of times that I have seen the killers face and motives in broadcasts. The perpetrators manifesto and twitter screen shots have circulated online. NPR included a screenshot of the killers hand holding his gun at Allison Parker, unaware that moments later she will be shot. I would link you too the page, but I wouldn't want to increase traffic to these pages of distasteful journalism. I feel that I have a right to know certain information, but not to see victims in such a vulnerable state moments before their death. I have been bombarded with information even when I’m not seeking it out. Each time it makes me feel a little uncomfortable. I can’t help, but wonder if this will fuel another individual’s motive to seek infamy – to kill.
Many, that worry the same thing, have publicly made remarks about the situation.
We live in a world where someone can shoot someone and put it up online, but does that mean we should see it? Something like that should not be shared.
As someone who hopes to join the media profession, I feel it is my duty to practice responsible journalism. People have a right to know the facts, but these facts about perpetrators of recent shootings are a little more than available for the public. Their faces and motives are everywhere. When we publish this information we are fueling the fire. We become an accessory to the next crime. I hope to be a part of a new media culture that works to change that.
