By Rosanne Skirble
Voice of America
Published: 10/4/2006
Excerpt:
The deadly shooting Monday in a
one-room schoolhouse in a rural Pennsylvania Amish community was the
third incident in less than a week in which U.S. schools were targeted
by violence. The events have triggered alarm bells among millions of
Americans seeking ways to prevent a recurrence of these fatal attacks.
In the most recent shooting, the gunman went to the Amish school
with the intent to kill. The incident left five girls and the shooter
dead. ...
... The media must also shoulder responsibility for reporting events honestly, says Scott Libin, a faculty member of The Poynter Institute, which offers short courses for journalists on such subjects as ethics and leadership.
He says the public is best served when news operations dutifully report facts,
not rumors, in an unfolding story. "We can certainly offer context, we
can provide background. We can help viewers to understand the images
they are seeing, but at the same time we have to be very conscious of
the fact that the very presence of the media can affect outcomes.
Helicopters hovering overhead can sometimes trigger tragic endings to
events that might otherwise have happier outcomes."
More of this article...
Search Google News for more quotes by Scott Libin...
