Sunday, May 31, 2020

I find it necessary to warn journalists to be careful about providing directions of where protesters and/or police are gathered. I understand why someone might mention the intersection where George Floyd was murdered as a place of a memorial, however, I caution everyone about providing landmarks when reporting on actual live protests.

Three journalists are in prison after trials at the Hague because they did the same thing. Their discussions of locations resulted in human rights violations. Simply mentioning streets, intersections and/or landmarks where protests are taking place or where police are deployed can be a method whereby people like the KKK can find victims.

I think reporting can occur better without bringing the location(s) of people to the broadcast. I would rather hear from the protesters, why they are there and any difficulties they are encountering in their attempts to get their message out. I don't need to hear from the police. They might implicate themselves if they aren't necessarily focused on their job so much as their own feelings affecting their own behaviors on the job.