The shootings at Virginia Tech have highlighted just how much technology, particularly the Web, has completely changed the dynamic of how reporters and citizens respond to crises. Not only were news channels using a student's cell phone video recording in their broadcasts, but they depended on the blogosphere to provide them with the most up-to-date information.
And now, we've learned that even the shooter took advantage of the technology at his fingertips. Cho Seung-Hui sent NBC a "multi-media manifesto" on the day of the massacre with video clips and disturbing photos of the killer, including some of him pointing a gun into the camera. These images are now plastered on news sites and networks and are incredibly disturbing.
On the NBC evening news, host Brian Williams commented that these photos gave us a look at what the victims saw immediately before he shot them. The media has an obligation at this point to strike that fine balance between what comments and images the public should be exposed to, and what crosses the line of indecent. While they provide insight into Seung-Hui's state of mind, I have to say the media's response crossed that line.
On the other hand, the student's cell phone video is compelling because the sounds of gun shots placed the rest of the world in the moment. No other recordings captured the scene as it played out, and for that reason alone I agree with the decision by the networks to broadcast the video. In those moments immediately following the shootings it was the best information the media could get their hands on. The public was waiting for anything that could help them grasp the reality of what had happened, and that is what the video did. The sounds of shots and screams are disturbing, but no more disturbing than the descriptive stories from students about helping their wounded peers.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment