I may not have mentioned it before, but I have become quite the fan of Anderson Cooper 360. I think it’s one of the most unbiased news programs on television… and in reality, I wasn’t even searching for that, as I have found myself leaning quite a bit in favor of the liberals lately anyway. But, last night, I was quite saddened by their coverage of the Virginia Tech tragedy.
As I’m sure everyone knows by now, this deranged kid who committed all the murders, Cho, sent a package to NBC right after the first shootings, and before the second. The package contained videos, pictures, and a large “manifesto.” NBC did the right thing (I’m sure only after making copies of everything first) and turned over all the material to the authorities. Well, after a few hours had passed… the package contents were on every major news station.
Now, I didn’t watch any other program, so I can’t speak for them, but I’d be surprised to find out anyone covered it any different than CNN and AC-360, which is to say that they showed this guys homemade crazy-as-all-get-out videos non-stop, on repeat for two straight hours. What purpose does this possibly serve? Mo Rocca (that guy who does all the commentary shows on VH1) had a great article on his blog today about it, here are some highlights;
Here’s a challenge: Give me a single upside to NBC showing the video, even the stills, from Cho’s press kit. (Sorry, no prize this time.) Just one good thing that will come from this.
You don’t need to tell me all the bad things: further desensitization, inspiring of copycats … I got those covered. (Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris left their fans wanting more image-wise. Cho’s iconography might be kind of hackneyed but it’s plentiful, perfect for screensavers. A few may even make the leap to t-shirts, a la Patty Hearst. Or how about “Cho” instead of “Che”?)
It really is sad… because Mo is right, the only things that come out of showing that footage, besides feeding our voyeuristic desires, are the things he mentioned.
