Shooting at Va Tech

[Deb in IA]

And most of the people in this country don't agree with you, notAgain.

ABC News Poll:

Before Seung-hui Cho killed 33 people, including himself, he sent a letter, videos and pictures to NBC. Networks have aired the video and pictures, and the grizzly killer's twisted intentions are appearing on the Web and in print.

Should the media have aired the video Seung-hui Cho?

No. The media are glorifying Cho, and the video opens up the door to copycats.
1,531
Yes. It helps people understand what a twisted soul Cho was.402
I am not sure. I think there's a fine line and the media must be careful not to cross it.180
Total Vote: 2,113

 

[mirthmaiden]

Who are you telling? I've seen quite a few asian movies and I couldn't even finish a lot of those. They are way more gross and violent than US movies.

Exactly. I'm speaking to people all over the world who instantly want to blame our "cowboy" gun culture, but they are blind to violence everwhere else. Just look at what happens in Iraq every day and yet the world refuses to acknowledge it. Guns are not the problem. Sick twisted people are the problem. If you make it illegal to get a gun, they will find a way. They don't care about laws. Happens at the micro and macro level (counties like Iran and N. Korea). Evil people will find a way to carry out violence.

 

[mirthmaiden]

And most of the people in this country don't agree with you, notAgain.

ABC News Poll:

Before Seung-hui Cho killed 33 people, including himself, he sent a letter, videos and pictures to NBC. Networks have aired the video and pictures, and the grizzly killer's twisted intentions are appearing on the Web and in print.

Should the media have aired the video Seung-hui Cho?

No. The media are glorifying Cho, and the video opens up the door to copycats.
1,531
Yes. It helps people understand what a twisted soul Cho was.402
I am not sure. I think there's a fine line and the media must be careful not to cross it.180
Total Vote: 2,113

Please consider the source. "most" people don't watch ABC news.

 

[meloneyb21]

To me, this is more like a DUH factor.

Why would he send these things to NBC as opposed to just keeping it in his home or something? Because he knew what he was doing. He knew that what he was going to do was gonna be BIG and he knew it would be ALL OVER the news. He knew that if he sent it to a news outlet, it would be on everyone's TV's all over the world and this is a way to get his message across after he dies. It makes it more haunting. He wants to torture everyone he's feels has crossed him from beyond the grave. He wanted to be able to say what he had to say in a way so that no one could question him or respond in anyway. It's like he's saying "YOU listen to ME now!" Should they have aired it? NO! Because they did just what he wanted them to do. He knew. He was a maniac, but I strongly doubt he was stupid in any way. He knew the media would be too greedy to let this slide.

 

[pgsahm2]

To me, this is more like a DUH factor.

Why would he send these things to NBC as opposed to just keeping it in his home or something? Because he knew what he was doing. He knew that what he was going to do was gonna be BIG and he knew it would be ALL OVER the news. He knew that if he sent it to a news outlet, it would be on everyone's TV's all over the world and this is a way to get his message across after he dies. It makes it more haunting. He wants to torture everyone he's feels has crossed him from beyond the grave. He wanted to be able to say what he had to say in a way so that no one could question him or respond in anyway. It's like he's saying "YOU listen to ME now!" Should they have aired it? NO! Because they did just what he wanted them to do. He knew. He was a maniac, but I strongly doubt he was stupid in any way. He knew the media would be too greedy to let this slide.

Very well said. The media is giving him exactly what he wanted.

 

[beachblanket]

And most of the people in this country don't agree with you, notAgain.

ABC News Poll:

Before Seung-hui Cho killed 33 people, including himself, he sent a letter, videos and pictures to NBC. Networks have aired the video and pictures, and the grizzly killer's twisted intentions are appearing on the Web and in print.

Should the media have aired the video Seung-hui Cho?

No. The media are glorifying Cho, and the video opens up the door to copycats.
1,531
Yes. It helps people understand what a twisted soul Cho was.402
I am not sure. I think there's a fine line and the media must be careful not to cross it.180
Total Vote: 2,113

Deb, you forget to mention that this ABC poll wasn't done with a random, scientific, representative sample of the U.S. population.

Instead, you simply quoted an online poll of people who happened to visit the ABC news website. ABC itself points that survey isn't projectable to the U.S. population with the following qualifier on the questionaire page:

Not a scientific survey.

So your generalization that "most of the people in this country don't agree with you" is unsupported - we don't yet know how the country in general is reacting.

 

[bsnyder]

This isn't scientific either, but I like the lede on the USA Today website right now:

NBC facing backlash for airing manifesto of Virginia Tech gunman

Relatives of victims of the Virginia Tech shooting canceled plans to speak with NBC because they were upset over the airing of images of shooter Cho Seung Hui, NBC Today show host Meredith Vieira said Thursday.

 

[bsnyder]

More "kudos" for NBC.

Va. Police Chief 'Disappointed' Cho's Manifesto Aired

By Debbi Wilgoren and Howard Schneider
Washington Post Staff Writers
Thursday, April 19, 2007; 10:18 AM

The head of the Virginia state police said he was "disappointed" that news outlets around the world broadcast photos and a video manifesto compiled by the gunman who killed 32 people on the campus of Virginia Tech this week.

Col. Steven Flaherty said that the material, while horrific and disturbing, gave authorities little information beyond what they had already collected.

"I'm sorry that you were all exposed to these images," Flaherty, Virginia state police superintendent, said in a televised briefing from campus this morning. He was referring to the contents of a package 23-year-old Cho Seung Hui apparently mailed from Blacksburg to NBC News in New York Monday morning -- after shooting two students to death in a campus dormitory and before returning to campus to slaughter 30 students and professors in a classroom building.

NBC delayed release of the materials for several hours, at the request of police. But starting last night, they were broadcast on television and online, and shown in newspapers and news programs around the world.

In viewing Cho's photos of himself posing with handguns, and listening to his profanity-laced rants, "the world has endured a view of life that few of us would or should ever have to endure," Flaherty said. "It's a side of life that, a few years ago, only those who had chosen to work in a profession that's responsible for managing or mitigating crime and violence would be exposed to."

 

[beachblanket]

This isn't scientific either, but I like the lede on the USA Today website right now:

Most of the major media outlet reports I'm seeing right now about "backlash" are focusing on the reactions of people in the VT community, and understandably they are very upset about NBC's actions.

That stated, I sense a wee bit of "jealousy" in the major media outlet emphasis (ergo, sour grapes behavior due to the fact NBC got the "exclusive") and as another poster insightfully pointed out earlier, does anyone here actually think CNN, Fox, ABC or CBS (or for that matter USA Today) would have acted any differently?

By the way, I'm personally on the fence about whether the material should have been published/broadcast. While my heart says no, my brain realizes censorship is often counter-productive (ergo, holding back the material would have only increased interest in it, eventually resulting in it being "leaked.")

 

[Amlee]

While I don't think it was smart of NBC to show those things. They aren't forcing people to read or watch those things. It's like going to see an R rated movie and then complaining it was to violent or gory to watch. You should know going in it was going to be that way.

 

[grlpwrd]

Deb, you forget to mention that this ABC poll wasn't done with a random, scientific, representative sample of the U.S. population.

Instead, you simply quoted an online poll of people who happened to visit the ABC news website. ABC itself points that survey isn't projectable to the U.S. population with the following qualifier on the questionaire page:

Not a scientific survey.

So your generalization that "most of the people in this country don't agree with you" is unsupported - we don't yet know how the country in general is reacting.

Do we really need a survey to know how most of us feel anyway? The survivors, victim's families, and the Tech community in general are infuriated like so many of us and they have spoken out. These people are the one's who have first-hand/direct trauma.

I just watched a clip of cell phone video coverage of the shooting at Norris Hall and it got me upset to the point of tears. I can only imagine how it is for those directly affected...

 

[Laura]

Most of the major media outlet reports I'm seeing right now about "backlash" are focusing on the reactions of people in the VT community, and understandably they are very upset about NBC's actions.

That stated, I sense a little "jealousy" in the major media outlet actions (ergo, NBC got the exclusive here) and as another poster insightfully pointed out earlier, does anyone here actually think CNN, Fox, ABC or CBS (or for that matter USA Today) would have acted any differently?

I'm sure that many people like me who have no connection to Virginia Tech are feeling angry/upset/dismayed that these images were aired. Do we know if it's a majority or a minority? Hardly. I would have to wonder what the professional crime fighters think about it. Naturally, the families and the survivors would be upset.

And no, I don't think it mattered which network got the package. Obviously, everyone else is broadcasting the same stuff.

 

[bsnyder]

Most of the major media outlet reports I'm seeing right now about "backlash" are focusing on the reactions of people in the VT community, and understandably they are very upset about NBC's actions.

That stated, I sense a little "jealousy" in the major media outlet actions (ergo, NBC got the exclusive here) and as another poster insightfully pointed out earlier, does anyone here actually think CNN, Fox, ABC or CBS (or for that matter USA Today) would have acted any differently?

No, I don't think the other news outlets would have reacted any differently. I'd be willing to bet that any one of them would have jumped at the chance to publish first. It's a cost/benefit analysis. They aren't going to suffer any serious consequences for their irresponsible behavior. They never do.

You imply by the use of "understandably" that the VT community should be very upset by NBC's actions. I'm curious, why should their reactions be different from that of the general public with regards to this particular decision?

 

[mirthmaiden]

Do we really need a survey to know how most of us feel anyway? The survivors, victim's families, and the Tech community in general are infuriated like so many of us and they have spoken out. These people are the one's who have first-hand/direct trauma.

I just watched a clip of cell phone video coverage of the shooting and it got me upset to the point of tears. I can only imagine how it is for those directly affected...

I'm sorry you were upset but why did you watch? Just because somebody broadcasts something doesn't mean you have to watch it/read it/listen to it. I would rather risk being confronted with a disturbing image than to have other people decide for me whether or not I should see it. I want to make that choice for myself.

 

[ZuZugal]

This media should absolutely be made available. Viewing it could help answer questions many people have about the situation. Shuttering it because of the random possibility it might trigger someone else is not the right idea.

I think this media should have been kept in the hands of the proper authorities who are in the position to decide what questions needed to be answered. They have all of the pertinent information, not us. The release of this info was only "part of the story". I do not know what questions needed to be answered nor should I.

If by "many people" you mean the families of those murdered by this man, that should be up to them. If they would want to view it for further information fine. But now it is put in their faces if they turn on the TV or log onto the internet. What a shame.

My homepage when logging onto the internet used to be MSN. Now it is not. I will not be subjected to continually looking at the killer's face and pictures because NBC decided to make the information public.

 

[bsnyder]

While I don't think it was smart of NBC to show those things. They aren't forcing people to read or watch those things. It's like going to see an R rated movie and then complaining it was to violent or gory to watch. You should know going in it was going to be that way.

I completely disagree. The still pictures from the video are plastered on the front page of every major newspaper in the country. You couldn't possibly walk down a major city downtown and avoid seeing them. I had three of the pictures delivered to my office this morning - on the front page of the three major papers I subscribe to.

I accept the fact that if the video exists, it's going to eventually be shown. But YouTube is available, and people could make the choice to watch it or not. And I think NBC would have been okay publishing the text of the killer's "manifesto". It does have some news value. But the videos don't. All that is accomplished by airing them is to validate and glorify a twisted, sick individual.

 

[notAgain]

Do we really need a survey to know how most of us feel anyway? The survivors, victim's families, and the Tech community in general are infuriated like so many of us and they have spoken out. These people are the one's who have first-hand/direct trauma.

Apparently we do, since we don't know how most of us feel. The tiny population of "the survivors, victim's families, and the Tech community in general" should not weigh too heavily in the decision to release this. It was a crime, this is evidence. It isn't like NBC went in and stole cel phones that had images on them or something.

 

[grlpwrd]

I'm sorry you were upset but why did you watch? Just because somebody broadcasts something doesn't mean you have to watch it/read it/listen to it. I would rather risk being confronted with a disturbing image than to have other people decide for me whether or not I should see it. I want to make that choice for myself.

Of course, I chose to watch.

The victims' families and the survivors are bombarded with images and reminders, though. They are being traumatized again. I think there should be more victims' rights...

 

[notAgain]

The still pictures from the video are plastered on the front page of every major newspaper in the country.

That's because they are news. Did you not see 9-11 imagery? Do we not see images from Iraq? People arrested for different things? BTW, there wasn't one on the front page of my major newspaper.

 

[bsnyder]

That's because they are news. Did you not see 9-11 imagery? Do we not see images from Iraq? People arrested for different things? BTW, there wasn't one on the front page of my major newspaper.

You're missing the point. The images from 9/11 and Iraq are coming from multiple, multiple sources. They couldn't possibly be contained. In this case, they could - because only NBC received this information from the killer. He didn't mail it to the police, but to a single news outlet. Clearly, he wanted the stuff broadcast.