Thu 6 Dec 2007
From CNN: “Mall shooter’s suicide note: Now I’ll be famous“. On top of this headline for the past almost 24 hours now has been his full size picture and name where millions of people open up the site and see this mass murderer.
CNN (and other news networks) have successfully fulfilled the stated goal of this mass murderer by making him famous. And any other would-be mass murderers can see yet another example of the instant-fame begotten by killing.
CNN, there are 30 gun deaths in the US each day. Report on the policies that allow this. Report on the fact that it is less than 1 in many other industrialized countries. Report about the hundreds of accidental gun deaths and the simple safety mechanisms to prevent them. And if reporting on a mass murder such as this, report on the victims, but don’t glorify the culprit by giving him any face time. The next shooter is watching.
December 6th, 2007 at 10:10 am
I couldn’t agree with your position more. Thanks for publishing this and for following up on it.
December 6th, 2007 at 11:33 am
Great post Mike. Now CNN is using this story as an opportunity to dive into the very pressing issue facing America…”Are our Malls Safe?!”
Exactly how far away from the actual problem are we going to get??
December 6th, 2007 at 11:33 am
You’re totally right. We need media outlets that cover real stuff…preferably, in fun and accessible ways. Media right now is a critical structural defect in our polity. Good post.
December 6th, 2007 at 1:42 pm
BBC (2nd story) and Al Jazeera (buried in Americas section) have it as well but aren’t devoting as much attention to it.
The Al Jazeera story is interesting in that it mentions Bush was in Omaha an hour before the shooting and chronicles recent mass gun murders in the US.
I agree with you 100%, Mike.
James
December 7th, 2007 at 4:07 pm
You’re right about the famous part Mike. I agree that we should not focus on the criminal and give them the fame they seek. We should focus on the heros - if there are any. When the shooting at Thurston happened I asked the RG to focus on Jake and Josh Ryker who risked their own lives to dissarm the shooter.
To your other point; any crime requires means, motive and opportunity. We should look at the policies that touch on each, not just the policies that focus on means. The means aren’t the cause.
December 7th, 2007 at 4:12 pm
Unfortunately, the old saw in news orgs
If it bleeds it leads
Also provides a natural advantage to The Forces of Darkness.
Their single most effective weapon is fear, because when you’re afraid, the cognitive part of your brain shuts down in favor of the old Snake Brain’s Fight or Flight choice.
Don’t really know how you counter this except for the slow and necessary slog long championed by Jefferson.
Educate.
After all, peole who acquire their information in half hour chunks on local TV will definitely come to believe that their immediate environment is saturated in violence because you will never see this lead story:
Today in Eugene 148,594 peole went about their business without incident
Eugene: population 148,595—From the 2006 census
December 7th, 2007 at 5:19 pm
Great post, Mike! Unfortunately, you’re right, there are lots of examples of just this problem. And Pat is right. I worked in journalism just a little, and was appalled at the fact that even in a small town paper, you don’t get to write what actually happened at, say, a city council meeting. The form, the conventional way news is written, is so rigid that it comes out sounding like they know what they’re doing even when they are complete idiots. I’m sure that same principle holds right up the ladder to national news.
Am interested to see your blog - looks good and sounds good! I’ll try to check it out regularly now that I’m retired and have a little more time.
Good to hear!
December 7th, 2007 at 8:20 pm
….and this is the link Google gives me on your e-mail… check it out, it’s a very interesting column!
http://www.sixwise.com/newsletters/06/04/19/check_out_all_the_violence_here_or_how_i_jolt_you_into_submission_to_get_your_money.htm
February 3rd, 2008 at 6:22 pm
[…] ended my post after CNN glorified the last culprit by saying “the next shooter is watching.” We may never know if this culprit watched and […]