When big things happen, the one question that not enough people are asking is who should you trust?
In the aftermath of the shooting Sunday night at and around the site of the Sons of Jacob Synagogue, there has been an explosion of stories from local, regional, national and international sources (I won’t include some of them under the category of news outlets), with the coverage often testing my patience and also straining the confines of both rational, decent and balanced coverage.
It is very common and understandable for people to seek meaning in the madness behind such atrocities. Unfortunately, such inquiries are often very complicated and aren’t made easier to figure out when the people presenting the answers confuse opinion with facts.
I won’t point figures or go into huge detail over the shortcomings I have witnessed both in terms of small factual errors and larger, and more egregious injections of political commentary, wild speculation and borderline distortion of the details involved.
Safe to say, if you have been following things closely online for the past four days, you have also been disgusted at times by the lack of sensitivity, balance and common sense.
From the initial reporting of the details involved during the first few terrifying hours of the shooting spree to the search for a motive and a way to make sense of the chaos, it has not brought out the best in all with the sacred duty of being the public’s lens on the fateful events of Sunday night.
From shortcuts or misrepresentations to “anonymous sources”, far too many people have fanned the flames of our collective anxiety with disregard to the people still grieving and trying to start the healing process.
This afternoon, we will hear from Belleville Police Chief Murray Rodd directly, with the hope that one of the few official sources can help provide some clarity on the investigation. I am very hopeful that his words will be repeated loudly and clearly in the days that follow, though the evidence of the past four days doesn’t leave me especially hopeful that it will be done accurately.
I’m Paul Martin and that’s what I see looking Beyond the Headlines.
