Post by dgan on Aug 17, 2006 1:09:24 GMT -5
" We are making progress, and we are moving forward."
-- Comdr. Mark Beckner, Dec. 5, 1997
Those were the words of the lead investigator of the Jonbenet Ramsey case, about a year after the little girl's murder. A murder that occurred a decade ago.
Yesterday, you probably heard that a man has been arrested overseas who investigators have been working on trying to nab for months (at least) as a suspect in the case.
I am not going to speculate into whether or not they finally caught the right guy, or whether or not they would be able to convict him even if he was. Those things will play out over several months and I leave it in God's hands.
What I did want to say was that this happened 10 years ago. For some of us, it was a shocking introduction to adulthood, when we realized we would soon be the caretakers of these fragile little beings. Many of you were not even teenagers yet, and may remember it as just another story. In some ways, it was just that - another story. Yet in American society and even worldwide, this story did its part to change all of us and all generations to come.
JonBenet was one of about 2000 minors that were murdered in America in 1996. Most of those children were killed by their parents, which is a statistical reality in minors' deaths, even today. Why then was this one case singled out? Was it because of Christmas? Because she was a young model/performer?
We find ourselves asking these same questions today. Natalee Holloway, Laci Peterson (and child), Elizabeth Smart...shall I go on? Why are these individual cases plucked from the ocean of statistically similar cases in America each year? And, more to the point, is it important?
Our media went through an awakening about that time. There was Rodney King, O.J. Simpson, JonBenet and other legal and crime analysis cases happening just when cable TV was finding its niche. What may have seemed a small story to ABC, CBS and NBC was often a huge story to the cable channels. When I say, "Why does this happen?", I intend it to be a very basic question.
We could go into specifics about how it tends to be attractive white females, or how it often involves the rich who buy their way into publicity for their story. Or maybe how a certain reporter or network is looking for a particular story just to score a political or social victory somehow.
But there is a much more fundamental reason for this. It is because we want to see it. I use "we" as a general term to describe those of our society who will sit and watch this. I admit I am one of them, though not fanatically - but it does grab my attention.
You see, the networks (both cable and then the 'major' networks) figured out how to market these stories. They were no longer reporting the news, but advertising it. In fact, the media frenzy alone is often a story in itself.
One of my favorite books right now is Why My Wife Thinks I'm an Idiot. This isn't in the book, but I often hear the author and sportscaster, Mike Greenberg ("Greeny") say this about journalists: "At some point in journalism, it became more important to get the story first rather than to get it right." How very true.
Where am I going with this? Well, as easy as it would be to blame the media for seemingly exploiting these stories for their financial benefit, aren't they really doing us a favor, even if inadvertently? Aren't "we", in this violence-numbing society, searching desperately? We are not searching for something that is intriguing or exciting, but something that makes us believe in right and wrong; something that reminds us of our mortality; something that reinforces our sense of responsibility. In short, we learn about ourselves from these stories rather than simply absorbing meaningless information.
As a father, I don't see my daughter as one of millions of kids in America. I see her as the single most precious thing on this earth. I appreciate the coverage of the JonBenet story because it reminds me not that 2,000 kids will be murdered this year, but that one unique child, with one unique face, with one unique personality, with one unique spirit is the most valuable responsibility we have. And that I do not have infinite or omnipotent control over her protection.
Cherish the children you have - or the children you will have - and love them with all your heart. The day will come too quickly, and possibly unexpectedly, that you do not have each other.
Never take today for granted.
(I am the father of one, beautiful daughter. I expect this story to be a frustrating media circus, that will have me throwing things at the TV yelling for them to shut up. However, though I am often the first to issue a complaint about the media, I appreciate the challenge of reporting on six billion people and somehow making it personal and meaningful. Understanding ahead of time that the coverage will not be perfect, I hope we use our time with the media to learn what we can rather than complain about what we can't.)
-- Comdr. Mark Beckner, Dec. 5, 1997
Those were the words of the lead investigator of the Jonbenet Ramsey case, about a year after the little girl's murder. A murder that occurred a decade ago.
Yesterday, you probably heard that a man has been arrested overseas who investigators have been working on trying to nab for months (at least) as a suspect in the case.
I am not going to speculate into whether or not they finally caught the right guy, or whether or not they would be able to convict him even if he was. Those things will play out over several months and I leave it in God's hands.
What I did want to say was that this happened 10 years ago. For some of us, it was a shocking introduction to adulthood, when we realized we would soon be the caretakers of these fragile little beings. Many of you were not even teenagers yet, and may remember it as just another story. In some ways, it was just that - another story. Yet in American society and even worldwide, this story did its part to change all of us and all generations to come.
JonBenet was one of about 2000 minors that were murdered in America in 1996. Most of those children were killed by their parents, which is a statistical reality in minors' deaths, even today. Why then was this one case singled out? Was it because of Christmas? Because she was a young model/performer?
We find ourselves asking these same questions today. Natalee Holloway, Laci Peterson (and child), Elizabeth Smart...shall I go on? Why are these individual cases plucked from the ocean of statistically similar cases in America each year? And, more to the point, is it important?
Our media went through an awakening about that time. There was Rodney King, O.J. Simpson, JonBenet and other legal and crime analysis cases happening just when cable TV was finding its niche. What may have seemed a small story to ABC, CBS and NBC was often a huge story to the cable channels. When I say, "Why does this happen?", I intend it to be a very basic question.
We could go into specifics about how it tends to be attractive white females, or how it often involves the rich who buy their way into publicity for their story. Or maybe how a certain reporter or network is looking for a particular story just to score a political or social victory somehow.
But there is a much more fundamental reason for this. It is because we want to see it. I use "we" as a general term to describe those of our society who will sit and watch this. I admit I am one of them, though not fanatically - but it does grab my attention.
You see, the networks (both cable and then the 'major' networks) figured out how to market these stories. They were no longer reporting the news, but advertising it. In fact, the media frenzy alone is often a story in itself.
One of my favorite books right now is Why My Wife Thinks I'm an Idiot. This isn't in the book, but I often hear the author and sportscaster, Mike Greenberg ("Greeny") say this about journalists: "At some point in journalism, it became more important to get the story first rather than to get it right." How very true.
Where am I going with this? Well, as easy as it would be to blame the media for seemingly exploiting these stories for their financial benefit, aren't they really doing us a favor, even if inadvertently? Aren't "we", in this violence-numbing society, searching desperately? We are not searching for something that is intriguing or exciting, but something that makes us believe in right and wrong; something that reminds us of our mortality; something that reinforces our sense of responsibility. In short, we learn about ourselves from these stories rather than simply absorbing meaningless information.
As a father, I don't see my daughter as one of millions of kids in America. I see her as the single most precious thing on this earth. I appreciate the coverage of the JonBenet story because it reminds me not that 2,000 kids will be murdered this year, but that one unique child, with one unique face, with one unique personality, with one unique spirit is the most valuable responsibility we have. And that I do not have infinite or omnipotent control over her protection.
Cherish the children you have - or the children you will have - and love them with all your heart. The day will come too quickly, and possibly unexpectedly, that you do not have each other.
Never take today for granted.
(I am the father of one, beautiful daughter. I expect this story to be a frustrating media circus, that will have me throwing things at the TV yelling for them to shut up. However, though I am often the first to issue a complaint about the media, I appreciate the challenge of reporting on six billion people and somehow making it personal and meaningful. Understanding ahead of time that the coverage will not be perfect, I hope we use our time with the media to learn what we can rather than complain about what we can't.)
Twyrch /|\
