I’m sorry I was out of pocket most of the day, but I see Hugh did an outstanding job taking NBC to task for its atrocious decision-making. I have but one little kernel of information to add to the conversation.

I spoke earlier today with a psychiatrist who frequently works with schools who are trying to get over a student’s suicide. The first rule is to not do anything that honors the deceased student; if you do, you make his suicide a “success.” For instance, the school administration might think it would be a swell thing to name the football field after the deceased student. But doing so would have disastrous consequences vis-à-vis encouraging copycats.

NBC, by showing Cho’s manifesto, made his mission a success. Other lunatics who might be contemplating going out in a murderous blaze of infamy took note. Make no mistake – what NBC did will encourage copycats and increase the likelihood of a copycat attack. If there’s a next one, which by the way is a far greater likelihood than it was 13 hours ago when NBC breathlessly aired its scoop, a portion of the blood that comes from the next carnage will be on NBC’s hands.

One additional note: The school in the illustration I cited above was trying to do the right thing. In other words, its heart was in the right place. NBC, on the other hand, did what it did merely to pursue ratings and an exclusive.

One wonders exactly how low the 21s century mainstream media can ultimately go.

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