By ,
Published November 29, 2015
Virginia TV station WDBJ opened its first morning news broadcast since a reporter and cameraman were murdered in cold blood during a live interview by showing an image of the victims, Alison Parker and Adam Ward.
Anchor Kim McBroom, who was helming the program Wednesday when Parker and Ward were shot and killed by a disgruntled former reporter, told the audience "We come to you with heavy hearts," and noted the outpouring of support that followed the deaths. The station then went into a series of news pieces on the shooting, including stories about the criminal investigation, church services and a vigil at the White House.
Earlier, McBroom briefly fought through tears as she prepared for the 5 a.m. newscast. During his first weather report, station meteorologist Leo Hirsbrunner admitted, "I don't even know how to do weather on a day like this." His voice trembled at times while he finished giving the temperatures around the Roanoke area.
As the segment ended, McBroom told him: "Good job, partner. We're going to get through this together." Later, a grief counselor joined McBroom and fill-in anchor Steve Grant, of Springfield, Mo. station KYTV, who flew came to town to help with the coverage.
Amid Tuesday's tragedy, Parker and Ward's colleagues at Roanoke's CBS affiliate saved their tears for off the air. Their grief was evident during the newscasts that followed, but so was their restraint.
"This is a hard day for all of us here at WDBJ7. We are mourning Alison and Adam, but it is our job to find the facts," anchorwoman Melissa Ganoa said during the 5 p.m. EDT newscast Wednesday, less than 12 hours after the shooting by a fired station employee, Vester Flanagan, who died later of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
What unfolded was familiar to any TV viewer: A recounting of the crime; news conferences with updates from authorities, and reaction from those who knew the victims. A third person, local chamber of commerce executive Vicki Gardner, who was being interviewed by Parker, was shot and wounded.
The station left it other outlets to dwell on the footage from WDBJ's unwitting broadcast of the shooting and, in a bleakly modern twist, apparent "selfie" video posted online by the alleged gunman.
An estimated 40,000 viewers saw it unfold live, untold numbers watched it afterward. The station received calls for interview requests from media outlets in Russia and Australia, among others.
"We are choosing not to run the video of that (the shooting) right now because, frankly, we don't need to see it again. And our staff doesn't need to see it again," Jeffrey Marks, WDBJ's president and general manager, said on air soon afterward. "But we will do full reporting on it later. Our teams are working on it right now, through the tears."
In sometimes shaky voices, Marks, reporters and anchors shared tender memories of Parker, 24, and Ward, 27, as kind friends and dedicated colleagues. They also provided sketchy details of the shooting. Then Marks, his hair disheveled but his emotions in check, put a stop to it, at least in those early, freshly painful moments.
"We should probably go back to regular programming now, rather than prolonging this. But rest assured, we'll come back on the air as more information becomes available," he said.
In an age when video of crashes, shootings, fires and other tragedies is readily available and endlessly replayed, it was a decision -- albeit it one influenced by personal loss -- that other outlets often fail to make and for which they are roundly criticized.
WDBJ news director Kelly Zuber was asked in an interview whether the station planned to air the selfie video. In it, a hand holding a gun is seen behind Ward for several seconds and then squeezes off shots at Parker.
"At this point we don't," she said Wednesday evening. "We'll review that as we go. It's pretty raw right now in our newsroom. And we will continue to process the journalism, and if that piece of video is important to what we do, we'll include it. But for right now, no. No."
Lee Wolverton, managing editor of The Roanoke Times, expressed the newspaper's sympathy for the victims and its intention to provide complete coverage. The paper's website Wednesday night included a screen grab of WDBJ's broadcast of the attack, labeled with a viewer warning, but not the selfie video.
"We recognize how important this story is in the life of our community and have strived to deliver the same kind of fullness and context we seek in every story," Wolverton said in an emailed response, adding that the Times' reporting would be thorough and presented in "a manner appropriate for the circumstances."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
https://www.foxnews.com/us/virginia-tv-station-at-center-of-on-air-tragedy-works-through-grief-to-cover-story