What is offensive about this picture? Or this video?
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The criticism is much worse for a WV Facebook page
Take a close look at the video (above) from a fire in Washington, DC or the picture (below) from a fire in Baltimore. Before you read further than this paragraph, answer the following questions. Do you believe either of them is something that I shouldn’t have posted on my website? Are they any different than most of the images and videos posted on STATter911.com each day? Do you see them as gory? Am I heartless for posting them?
Now, here’s the rest of the story. After the picture of the Baltimore fire and the video from DC were posted, I received complaints. With the Baltimore picture, from Decemeber 14, 2010, the criticism came from a significant number of STATter911.com readers. The reason for the complaints is because the fire took the lives of six people, three children and three adults. I was told the picture, provided by IAFF Local 734, was gruesome and that I was cruel for posting it. They talked a lot about the impact on surviving relatives.
The criticism came as a surprise, because in 38 years of covering news I don’t believe I had ever been told that a picture of a burning building, one that shows no victims, shouldn’t be published.
Maybe I shouldn’t have been so shocked. Exactly one week earlier, I posted a video where a news cameraman was yelled out by a Connecticut State Police trooper for taking video of a car fire where a woman died. Her body had been removed prior to any video being shot. The feedback from the column I wrote critical of the trooper was strongly in favor of the trooper and against me. Despite all of the hate mail, I stood by my opinion on the trooper and my decision to post the Baltimore photo.
My view was, and is, that these images have long been a staple of news covered in the U.S. and around the world. To remove either would set a standard that precludes showing most images of fires. This would also include the many times I had shown somewhat more graphic pictures or images of firefighters rescuing people. Rarely do I get complaints from firefighters on those images. Some of the most iconic images of the fire service show victims.
The video from Washington, DC was posted on January 10, 2011. In that incident, a woman in the car died. As I recall, there were no complaints from firefighters or anyone else in the public, with the exception of one person. That one person was a lawyer with a well-known lobbying firm in Washington. The lawyer, at first, demanded I take the video down. When I pressed him on his connection to the story, he explained he was a friend of the family. The woman’s husband worked in the Obama administration. She was a lobbyist. When his demand fell flat and we had further discussions, he took a softer approach, appealing to my humanity by telling me to think of the couple’s children. I did think of them and felt quite sad, as I still do today.
While I don’t take any of these complaints lightly, I also take the job I do seriously. In telling the lawyer the video would stay on the site, I thought back to the picture a month earlier in Baltimore. I asked myself how could I give in to the pressure from this high-priced attorney about a video showing a burning car where a woman with connections to the White House died and not do the same for those complaining about me publishing a picture of the burning house where a less connected family died?
Thinking about the comparison of the two families made me realize I shouldn’t consider requests like these if I am going to have credibility or continue to publish this site. Yes, these were both tragic situations that cause an immense impact on families and friends. The point is, it’s impossible to cover news of the fire service without sharing these type images and stories. And in sharing all of this, I’ve learned to expect the complaints. It comes with the job, expecially in the social media age. It has become so bad, that not too long ago a sheriff and many others complained about the news media showing helicopter shots of destruction after a wildfire because the homeowners hadn’t yet been notified of the loss of their homes.
In addition, while I’m very cautious about showing victims, I can’t accept the idea that just showing where a tragedy occurred — be it a burning home or smoldering or crushed vehicle — should be an issue, no matter who the victims are.
All of this is an extremely roundabout way of getting to what has been happening on the STATter911.com Facebook post since yesterday (Saturday). There are scores of complaints about me over an image posted. It’s from the fire engine crash in West Virginia that killed two firefighters and hurt three others, including one with critical injuries.
First of all, my condolences to all of those connected to this tragedy involving the Pratt Volunteer Fire Department and my wishes for a speedy recovery to those who were injured.
As for the image, once again, it was one that showed no victims. It’s similar to other pictures I’ve posted over the last 10 years of heavily damaged fire apparatus, including many where other firefighters died or were seriously injured. It was posted about four hours after the incident occurred. This is the first time I recall receiving such complaints on the crash of fire apparatus. Here are a few excerpts from the comments:
Little soon to be posting pics of the apparatus don’t you think? I personally know 4/5 of those men in one way shape or form and being a Volunteer Firefighter at a neighboring Dept. In Eastern Kanawha County West Virginia I believe you could have some couth and refrain from posting pics of the apparatus hours after the incident.
This is very disrespectful to the families and all involved parties. No pictures should be posted until all notifications are made regardless, of what type of situation.
These pictures absolutely do not need posted! It’s upsetting and disrespectful to the families.
It’s been less than 12 hours since these lives were taken. Don’t you think this is disrespectful?
I ???? agree to soon to post pictures. I also worked ems and found it disgraceful when people would post pictures of wrecks they worked. Maybe the rule should apply to everyone.
Goodluck the bloke that runs this page is an AGrade f$&kwit that’d do anything for publicity. Sorry for your loss brother
You’re an asshole whoever u are at STATter911.com for posting pics like this just hours after the accident….have some couth for Gods sake…some of the families’ don’t even know yet!!!!!!! You’re a greedy journalist that lives to sensationalize tragedy and get your face on here…ugh
While I have read each of these and usually try to answer criticism personally, there were too many to do so. This post is my response. While you might not like it, this explains my decision on publishing the image. In addition these excerpts from a comment by STATter911 reader Ed Stiefvater also do a good job explaining my thinking:
To all those complaining about the pictures. I am sorry for your loss. But I don’r remember you complaining about pictures of house fires and car accidents before this. This is a news reporting site. This is news. If any television station had these pictures they would show them. They would show live video from the scene if they had been there. Just because YOU are personally affected doesn’t make this a different story. There are no pictures of the dead or injured here. If you find this somehow reprehensible, then perhaps you should apply those same principles to the pictures and posts that you yourselves share without thinking about it.
And on that very last point in the comment, while there are more than 350 comments about this post — with maybe half of them being complaints — the image was shared on Facebook more than 2600 times by the STATter911 audience, which consists mostly of firefighters.
