Re victimizing the people we want to help

Tonight I had a very interesting conversation with a woman who along with her child had been a crime victim. Her story belongs to her and until she wishes to publicly share it we’ll keep it that way.

One thing she talked about was how seeing her case and similar cases on the news forced her to live thru the crime again all over again.
This got me thinking. Since I started my blog I am a part of the media. A small part but a part just the same.

When I write about Melissa Huckaby would it hurt the parents of Sandra Cantu if they had seen it? Am I re victimizing Mrs. Cantu? I fear maybe I am and if so I am sorry for that. I feel this woman has gone thru enough pain without some jerk on the internet or a CNN reporter talking about her daughter’s killer.

When we report on cases like this yes we remind surviving victims their loved one is gone forever. I hope we also draw attention to the killer and apply public pressure to see that after their fair trial they get the harshest sentence possible. I wonder if Casey Anthony would be facing the death penalty again if the case wasn’t featured on Nancy Grace almost every night.

I hope we are teaching the lesson to the Melissa Huckaby’s, Casey Anthony’s, or Phillip Markoff’s in the making that you are not as smart as you think you are and there is still time for you to get the help you need before you hurt or kill someone.
I write because I want to be read. TV news both local and national isn’t as much about informing as it is about selling advertising, but that doesn’t mean we don’t do a genuine public good as well. We are showing criminals that you will be caught and the price of your 15 minutes of fame is prison.

I think with every story we bring forward on violent crime we make our communities just a little safer.

I’m sorry if that means re victimizing you. I feel for your pain and I wish all victims all the relief and recovery they can find. Even if we in the media slow that process down for you hopefully we are helping to prevent the next victim and that I hope you will understand and agree with that.