I promised myself I wouldn’t comment here about the Virginia Tech thing, but the news about the “multimedia manifesto” that the killer sent to NBC just has me irritated beyond belief. Look, I know that media is a business. The more eyeballs they get, the more subscriptions they get, the more viewers they get, all the better. I can’t change the fact that sex and violence sell. That will never change. But the media has got to start looking at itself here. Just because the killer sent some material, it doesn’t mean it should be splashed all over the airwaves.
Time and time again, they almost glamorize these murderers by giving them around-the-clock coverage on TV and in newspapers. Young people who are mentally ill or depressed see this coverage and see all the attention it gets. Part of the mantra here is a desperate cry for attention. What better way to get it? This particular person even cited the two Columbine killers. Surely if the media hadn’t draped those two Colorado kids all over the place a few years back, there would have never been that association. Why can’t media outlets – for once – try something new and skillfully report on the news, but leave all the pictures and names out of it? Completely ignore the murderer – don’t give them what they want! Don’t show others that they, too, can be “famous.” But no, the media rolls on just like Charlie Brown……each time, the football is yanked when they go to kick it.
Who knows how long it’ll be before someone else cites this jerkoff after another mass killing……