By happy coincidence rather than clever planning, the Winter 2013 issue of Gateway Journalism Review is filled with stories about the full range of First Amendment issues in the news. This focus on free speech is fitting, because GJR just celebrated the First Amendment at its annual fundraiser in St. Louis.
Charles Lee “Cookie” Thornton walked into the Kirkwood (Mo.) City Council one night in February 2008 and opened fire on city officials. Police who arrived on scene within minutes shot and killed Thornton, but not before he had killed six people and wounded two others. One of those wounded was Todd Smith, a reporter covering the City Council meeting for the Suburban Journal, a St. Louis-area publication. Smith, who was shot in the right hand, found himself catapulted from his reporting beat into the spotlight of national media. Smith recalled the events of the night for a group of 40 who attended a recent News at Noon event titled “Massacres in the Media” that was sponsored by the St. Louis-area Society of Professional Journalists.
Fatal workplace violence incidents have their roots in 1986, when a series of shootings at post offices around the country spawned the phrase “going postal.” In this preview of a full story in the upcoming Gateway Journalism Review, writer Pat Louise highlights one such workplace violence incident that garnered national media attention.
For many years I was on the reporter’s side of collecting news. When the massacre at an elementary school occurred in my hometown of Sandy Hook, Conn., I no longer was a member of the press, but rather a resident watching reporters, videographers, radio press, international writers and Internet bloggers descend on a hamlet that has one stoplight. (Editor’s note: This is a preview of a story that will appear in the next print issue of Gateway Journalism Review.)
Thanks to everyone who participated in the Gateway Journalism Review survey of the top stories for 2012. We have divided the survey results into two parts. The first part takes a look at the survey results for the most important international, national and regional/Midwest stories for 2012, in addition to the most important international media and U.S. media stories. The second part of the survey results – which will include the categories of what media coverage totally missed the mark, what international and national stories of 2012 deserved more/better coverage, and what was the most frivolous/overcovered story of 2012 – will be revealed next week.