January 17, 2014
According to CNN, there were 25 school shootings in 2013. The Daily Beast reports that over the course of the year after 20 first graders were shot and killed at Sandy Hook Elementary, school shootings took place in the U.S. every two weeks on average. Just three days ago, a widely-covered school shooting occurred in Roswell, New Mexico. In today’s charged atmosphere surrounding school shootings, and the greater likelihood that one will occur, the result of KSDK’s decision to go undercover- the lockdown- triggered even more panic and fear than it may have several years ago.
Although I personally wasn’t rattled by the lockdown, my mom was. She texted me soon after the event, asking if everything was alright, rattled by the mandatory call to parents by the school during a lockdown. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that Stacey Woodruff, KHS parent, said she wept when she received the call, and talked to her daughter over her cell phone throughout the lockdown. Caroline Goff, freshman, told the Post-Dispatch that students in her class “were scared that something was going to happen to [them], like at Sandy Hook.” KSDK’s apology failed to address the emotional impact such a terrifying experience can have on a community. I only hope they addressed as a staff the potentially devastating effects of undercover reporting.
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