Black assassin? Really? USA Today let’s chat.
I’m able to have smart conversations. I’m able to dissect news too. As a journalism professor who was once a newspaper editor (photo editor at The Columbus Dispatch (OH), Atlanta Journal-Constitution and The Dallas Morning News). I take exception to an article. Actually, just two words. Black assassin. THIS IS WHY I WOKE UP ANGRY with USA TODAY. It’s just one example. Black assassin? YES, yes he was. Not disputing assassination. BUT did anyone at that publication call Dylan Roof a White assassin? No, they didn’t. At least I couldn’t find it. I went through 17 pages of Google news articles history and couldn’t find one adjective even remotely close. I found gunman, alleged shooter, lone wolf, suspect, a man accused….Had I been an employee, I could’ve done better research without having to go through articles that had nothing to with with my keywords and research. But alas, I am here. Needing to purge some feelings.
In fact, six days after Roof’s shooting on June 16, 2015, USA Today called him a “lone wolf” and “White gunman.” Ok. I’m with you, that’s true. Assassin? Yup. Webster dictionary states, “ a person who kills someone (such as a famous or important person) usually for political reasons or for money : a person who assassinates someone.” It’s reported by friends commenting that Roof wanted to start a race war. So, I’d say that’s political. Therefore, I think it’s safe to call him an assassin too. But you didn’t call him that. Again, at least I couldn’t find it. But let’s be fair and use adjectives universally, K?
This is why you must be critical when reading news. Black assassin is a lot harsher. I’m NOT disputing that Dallas shooter Micah Xaxier Johnson killed innocent people — don’t go there with me. I’m not disputing he was an assassin. Just one word bothered me. Black.
Black gunman? Yes. Black sniper? Yes. Black assassin? Yes. BUT you didn’t call Dylan Roof a White assassin for KILLING BLACK PEOPLE PRAYING IN A CHURCH. You didn’t call Orlando shooter Omar Mateen an assassin. You called him a gunman. Here’s that article: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2016/06/12/orlando-nightclub-shooter-what-we-know/85791172/
I know Alison Young (who I’ve previously worked with at the AJC), co-wrote that article about Mateen with Matthew Diebel, I know they aren’t Ledyard King, the reporter who wrote this piece about Johnson in Dallas, but do you still have copy editors? Is there a policy on adjectives universarlly used when writing?
When I worked in the newsroom I remember a time when we didn’t pick politician photos that weren’t the same size; same head size. We didn’t want people to subliminally think we were selecting one candidate over another. I’m not picking on your news organization. I actually like USA Today. I look at articles from various publications every day. I just took exception to King’s article.
People, this is why diversity is important when hiring news editors.
http://www.usatoday.com/…/dallas-police-chief-dav…/86895246/
I am not an employee at USA Today, but if I were a news editor in that meeting, I would surely draw attention to that one word after I did some research. Because I can’t go through their full archives I couldn’t find one article that called Dylan Roof a White assassin three days after the massacre (see what word I used?). According to Webster dictionary massacre means “ the act or an instance of killing a number of usually helpless or unresisting human beings under circumstances of atrocity or cruelty.” I think praying people at a church qualify for that. Assassin is acceptable too. BUT if you’re going to do that, you’ve got to have a history for doing it for everyone.
We must be critical of what we read.
For the record USA Today called Roof’s shooting a massacre. They just didn’t call him a White assassin. They said, Roof, who is white, ….
Stay woke.
