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BLACKSBURG, VA - APRIL 20: Virginia Tech students, staff, families and other supporters gather at a memorial on campus for a moment of silence to commemorate the people killed in Monday's school shooting in Blacksburg, Virginia.

Credit: Scott Olson/Getty Images

Like everyone, we were pretty much devastated by the events at Virginia Tech this week. And just when it seemed like the vigils and Hokies! cheers were taking the edge off some of the grief, the now infamous Multimedia Manifesto showed up at NBC headquarters. As someone with no personal connection to the story, the pics and videos made me feel queasy... I can't imagine how it felt for the victim's families. Brian Williams and NBC took great pains to explain why they decided to air the stuff. In fact, they spent the top of their broadcast on Thursday night defending themselves. Even so, a couple of victim's families pulled out of their planned interviews with The Today Show in protest.

I know we here at The BPP haven't really posted much on the topic, but I guess that's because frankly, we didn't have all that much to add to the conversation. We cruised Facebook and MySpace looking at the online tributes. We called some of the victim's families trying, unsuccessfully -- to get interviews. I gotta say, though, I was kind of relieved no one agreed to give us a "Bryant Park Exclusive" from their hospital bed. It's a uniquely crappy feeling to call a grieving family with the goal of getting them to talk to you about it on the radio. I know that if it happened to my family, some reporter is the last person I'd be looking to talk to. Having said that, NPR has actually done some really thoughtful stuff on the topic. Make sure to check out Melissa Block's interview from Wednesday's All Things Considered.

Had we actually been on the air when things went down on Monday, I think we would have tried to call out to the dorms, just to hear from someone close to the scene about what was actually going on. We would have been checking Twitter and the other social networking sites to see if students were using them to communicate. Later on we would have probably tried to track down someone who lived through Columbine just to ask them if it's possible to have any semblance of a normal life after something like this happens to you.

Mostly though, we would have tried treat the story and the people affected with -- at the very least -- a little dignity. No "Former FBI Profilers" talking out their backsides about 'what the killer's motivations were four minutes after the news broke. No Bryant Park staffers camping out on the front lawn of the poor parents of the shooter. We'd basically try to be the anti-Nancy Grace .

There's not really much else to be said. It's a super sad situation, and it's going to take a really really long time for the people affected to feel even slightly okay again. If we see something that we really think you need to see, we'll put it up. Otherwise, we're going to kind of lay low.

Luke Burbank

3:09 PM ET | 04-20-2007 | permalink

Comments (Send a comment)

Thanks for your commitment for not doing the run-of-the-mill intrusive and tabloid angles on this story. I would've liked to hear coverage that focused on Internet social networking that discussed the incident.

Sent by Steve Petersen | 3:42 PM ET | 04-21-2007

This article was the best, most thought out, considerate piece I have seen or heard since that tragedy.

Steve

Sent by Steve | 11:58 PM ET | 04-21-2007

Luke,
Glad you guys could exercise the discretion and the honesty to realize that one more media outlet of coverage probably wouldn't have helped things too much at all! I look forward to what's next from you guys though!

Sent by Laura | 3:40 PM ET | 04-22-2007

I was appalled at the superficiality of your attitude and use of language about this tragic event. I know blogs are supposed to be informal, but you are journalists expected to write in depth articles (blogs) expressed in language that shows you have an education.

Sent by Miriam Rivera | 12:20 PM ET | 04-24-2007

I wonder if you write "There's not really much else to be said" just to provoke us.

I appreciated Linda Wertheimer's interview with Pete Earley on Weekend Edition and would like to hear more from NPR (BPP) on the bubbling subject of mental health parity that is floating around Congress and beyond.

Maia Szalavitz http://www.huffingtonpost.com/maia-szalavitz/mental-health-parity-gun_b_46275.html writes that "there's no indication" that Cho ever went without mental health care due to overly finite insurance benefits, and Governor Kaine's independent panel will look more closely into Cho's relationship with the mental health system. What exactly did Cho's benefits look like? What is the history of mental health coverage for other campus killers? What comparisons can be made to the mental health care systems in other developed countries?

Suppose Szalavitz makes an accurate point, and Cho never sought enough treatment for other reasons beyond his benefits package; perhaps cultural stigma may have been the obstacle to his critical care. Again, taking a step back, can we discuss other cultures more embracing of seeking help?

If BPP could shed light on how this incident holds more meaning for the nation than 32 senseless deaths, then in fact you would be treating the story and people involved with dignity.

Sent by Helen Ivor-Smith | 9:33 PM ET | 04-26-2007

I appreciate the "anti-Nancy Grace" description of how you would cover this.

I like that.

Sent by Jesse Bufton | 9:53 PM ET | 06-01-2007

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