TALAHAS, Fla. (WFLA) – A call has been received in a mass shooting at Florida State University. At the first moment of the news alert, details were not clear. In events like this, details often change. Reports of people killed or injured often increase or decrease as more reliable information is generated from the scene.
I’ve seen it before. In 2014, a similar call was issued by Florida State University. Myron May saw a graduate student shooting three people outside the library.
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Then, in 2018, Nickolas Cruz fired at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. He killed 17 people and was injured more. I remember arriving at the scene outside of high school, just like other news crews appeared. With police disability, some high school students came to see what news coverage would look like. People were crying, many were standing up in shock, some told us the fear of what they saw.
In 2016, I was sent to Orlando after yet another mass shooting. Omar Mayten shot and killed 49 people at the Pulse Nightclub and injured 53 more.
Again, other news crews appeared and I arrived. The obstacles were set up by Orlando Police and a media “staging area” was established. The police need to do their job. They need to maintain control of curiosity and sadness that they may want to handle crime scenes and get closer to aggressive investigations. It also needs to ensure that many media that reach mass shooting do their job will not interfere with their ability to do their job. Therefore, a “media staging area” allows media to be reasonably close to the situation and also allows law enforcement to provide media as quickly as possible in certain locations.
In either case, people who witnessed the tragedy or had friends involved will come to the scene. As a reporter, you want to listen to them, gather the best possible facts and cover what law enforcement officials have revealed about their respective situations.
As a human being, you have to be a brick wall so you don’t feel sympathy for the tragedy they are telling you.
Each mass shooting has people who want to share their individual stories. For some, talking about events, talking about people killed or injured, and sharing their stories is therapeutic. For others, being approached by intrusive media and its never-ending questions is offensive.
As a person, you need to be aware that different people deal with stress and tragedy in different ways. Some want to talk, some don’t, others have to respect each individual’s decision.
It also has to be a brick wall to avoid feeling the impact so that you don’t carry it with you when you leave. Over the years I have spoken to several experts over the years about the cumulative impact of covering each tragedy over the course of my career. At the end of each event, you must do your best possible.
I am a father and most of the students I met on the FSU campus this week were younger than my children. One of my daughters reached out to me. When I saw tears in the eyes of the students I interviewed, I knew I was thinking about them.
As a reporter, it has always been my goal to tell each story in a fair and honest way. It’s not about over-grazing or dramatizing facts, it’s about paying homage to the pain and loss of life that is being felt.
It’s not easy. I hope each mass shooting is covered at the end. But there is probably something else, as there is no simple answer to stop them every time you find out deep inside you.
