As many of you were, I was shocked and saddened when I woke up this morning to hear about another mass shooting- this time in a movie theater in Colorado. The evil that crossed my tv screen this morning cannot be overstated. This was an act of pure, premeditated evil.
I found myself watching the coverage, and as the day when on, I suddenly stopped and turned off the tv. Why was I watching this story? More importantly, why was the media covering it?
Shooters like this James Holmes guy live for media attention. That's why they do what they do- they know their actions will be broadcast worldwide and they will have their fifteen minutes of fame, even if it is as a despised mass killer. Or, in a more sick way, ESPECIALLY if it is as a despised mass killer.
I remember the debate over the Virginia Tech shooter- he mailed a "manifesto" to NBC news and they had a debate over whether they should show it. They decided not to.
Why can't news media outlets make a gentleman's agreement not to cover stories like this? Any mass killings, whether they are school shootings or movie theater killings, should automatically be buried. I am calling on news media outlets to announce that an incident happened, not identify the shooter's name, not glamorize his background, not show the "steps that led to his darkness,"- simply to announce that he has been tried and executed, and that his body was unceremoniously buried in an unmarked grave, or better yet, left out for the vultures to eat.
The people that see this as their chance to make a big statement to the world about how powerful they are will stop doing things like this when they realize there is no media coverage. They will not go down in history as the mass killer. They will be a John Doe pushing up daisies somewhere off the beaten path. They will not be able to make a statement with acts like this, and therefore, they will not do them.
The media coverage that I ate up so quickly this morning is probably the reason he did it. He probably didn't know any of the people he killed this morning. He didn't hate them or love them. He just wanted to do a terrible and horrible act that would cause suffering- and put his name on the news. My fear is that James Holmes has become a hero to some sick punk out there who would love to go down in the same way.
I will be writing to all major news outlets, asking them to make an agreement not to cover stories like this. I doubt they will take my advice, but I ask you to join me in this. Thanks.
I found myself watching the coverage, and as the day when on, I suddenly stopped and turned off the tv. Why was I watching this story? More importantly, why was the media covering it?
Shooters like this James Holmes guy live for media attention. That's why they do what they do- they know their actions will be broadcast worldwide and they will have their fifteen minutes of fame, even if it is as a despised mass killer. Or, in a more sick way, ESPECIALLY if it is as a despised mass killer.
I remember the debate over the Virginia Tech shooter- he mailed a "manifesto" to NBC news and they had a debate over whether they should show it. They decided not to.
Why can't news media outlets make a gentleman's agreement not to cover stories like this? Any mass killings, whether they are school shootings or movie theater killings, should automatically be buried. I am calling on news media outlets to announce that an incident happened, not identify the shooter's name, not glamorize his background, not show the "steps that led to his darkness,"- simply to announce that he has been tried and executed, and that his body was unceremoniously buried in an unmarked grave, or better yet, left out for the vultures to eat.
The people that see this as their chance to make a big statement to the world about how powerful they are will stop doing things like this when they realize there is no media coverage. They will not go down in history as the mass killer. They will be a John Doe pushing up daisies somewhere off the beaten path. They will not be able to make a statement with acts like this, and therefore, they will not do them.
The media coverage that I ate up so quickly this morning is probably the reason he did it. He probably didn't know any of the people he killed this morning. He didn't hate them or love them. He just wanted to do a terrible and horrible act that would cause suffering- and put his name on the news. My fear is that James Holmes has become a hero to some sick punk out there who would love to go down in the same way.
I will be writing to all major news outlets, asking them to make an agreement not to cover stories like this. I doubt they will take my advice, but I ask you to join me in this. Thanks.
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