KTVU continues to reap the notoriety over its questionable use of a controversial photo of murder victim, Nia Wilson. In the picture, Wilson is seen with a cell phone case that resembles a gun. The use of that picture has drawn the ire of several minority journalist groups in the Bay Area, including the Bay Area Black Journalists Association.Thursday's Washington Post also chimes in.
KTVU, Frank Somerville, its chief anchor, issued an apology but that has been met with mostly negative reaction and most groups critical of the picture essentially saying the apology was "not enough" and wanted more action taken by the station and its top management.
415 Media has learned through a source that KTVU owner, Fox, and its O and O group will be sending a couple of their media liaison execs out to the Oakland station to initiate an "internal inquiry" as to why the picture was used and who OKed its usage. In addition, KTVU managers will meet privately with the Fox group to determine if any violations occurred or if any personal misconduct took place.
MEANWHILE, inside the KTVU studios, the latest blunder --this time a photo of the stabbing victim who was murdered Sunday, has left an already sensitive newsroom even more tense; several staffers have been shaking their heads and wondering aloud: "How could this happen!"
Great question.
If the selfies, posted by this victim were so non-provocative, why did her family remove them? Have we collectively reached the point where comment is not allowed about news stories? If this young woman, who tragically lost her life, had posted pictures of herself with baby lambs and flowers, would the family have removed those pictures? Would pundits have been barred from mentioning how sweet they were?
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DeleteThere is nothing wrong with the photo, it is not a fake photo and it is a real one. The odd thing about this photo for some people is this person holding something resemble a loaded weapon or a gun is asking for trouble or don't mess with me. KTVU point showing this photo is to show how violence is targeting Blacks in Oakland and how Blacks are facing all sorts of violence victim or suspect each day and around the U.S. It is not fake, nothing to apologize about. It is actually helping the victims fighting against violence while some consider this person holding a gun is a troublemaker.
ReplyDeleteThe photo became fake when it was edited, cropped and taken out of context in that the full picture was not shown; it it was it's clear that the item is a phone but the way KTVU cropped it the pic looks like a real gun. It's not know when the photo was taken or if here talking on the phone was a gag or prank. Many people have pictures taken with laser or paintball guns that could be mistaken for the real thing.. It says something about the judgement of the station staff in that no other media outlet used the picture. Also let's not forget this not the first time that Channel 2 has been caught up in racist news judgement. When innocent people are victims of violence, the unwritten rule of journalism is to use the most flattering picture available. For example a picture used for a missing person was a nice portrait, not a picture of that missing person high and drunk at a frat party.
DeleteIt's about time someone called out KTVU and their inappropriate usage of videotape and slide. The other day on KTVU the story (sad) was about Tina Turner's son committing suicide and all the video showed was TT shaking her butt on stage. How offensive can you get? Another example was the story about the dangers of sunscreen and all the video showed was bikini clad women. Men use it too ya know. This a big deal because these little gremlins often called "news producers" shape our perception of the news and they don't seem to know what they're doing...scary when you think about it.
ReplyDeleteQuit whining about everything. You're not "progressive". You're just looking for something to be offended by on a daily basis.
DeleteHo Lee Fuk
ReplyDeleteWith the Asiana story, KTVU reported false names( a prank) of the cabin crew of an airplane that crashed on landing at SFO. Embarrassment and apologies followed. In this case, the photo in question was posted by the victim , along with other such selfies, on her own site. There was no false information that was reported, was there? Did any of this young woman's family ever suggest to her that her selfies might be perceived as less than complimentary?
ReplyDeleteThere are still a couple pictures of her pointing a gun on her facebook page. Several have been taken down The picture KTVU is in hot water for posting was her Facebook Profile Picture. However misguided, apparently she thought it wss “Cool” So one can assume she’d like to be represented that way. Facebook profile pictures are public after all.
ReplyDeleteSo was the media supposed to HIDE the photo? Is that what they're saying?
ReplyDelete12:57 you got it right. She wanted to be represented by that picture otherwise she wouldn't have made it so prominent on her Facebook page
ReplyDeleteAt least they didn't use a pboto of Irene Ryan.
ReplyDeleteProtests at the station? Frank must be tarred and feathered!
ReplyDeleteThis is Orwellian. Channel 2 puts a picture on the air that blows up the narrative for this story, that she’s a sweet innocent victim. The photo is real, not a hoax or photoshop job. But this little morsel of truth wrecks the story the PC police want the media to fabricate for this story. So now somebody is going to get fired for veering from the fake news script. I hope the guy who gets fired makes a big deal about how he was canned for putting something truthful on the air.
ReplyDeleteFrank’s on-air apology made their error worse, IMHO. I thought was going to weep with his forlorn facial expression. Is this a result of incompetence by writers, editors, and producers?
ReplyDeleteIt's just the issue of black and white.white woman killed by black suspect hardly any black protesters present I guarantee it
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