Compassionate Journalism

We all lack compassion sometimes. Yes, I mean every single one of us. So as you read this please do not think that I am saying I am the most compassionate man in the world. That would be a lie. I have a long way to go in that area. However, the news story I read this morning about a US Marine, Lance Corporal Joshua Bernard, is appalling for its lack of compassion by the Associated Press and I cannot let this pass without mentioning it.

This brave Marine gave his life for his country in Afghanistan recently. He was wounded in battle and while his fellow Marines attended to him in his final minutes, the AP managed to get some photos of Lance Cpl. Bernard. The AP chose to publish a photo of the dying Marine despite the repeated appeals of Lance Cpl. Bernard’s father and a request from Secretary of Defense Robert Gates to not publish it. The AP responded by publishing the photo anyways and reasoned that they published it because it “conveys the grimness of war and the sacrifice of young men and women fighting it.”

So let me get this right. Please help me understand. You have the father of a fallen marine requesting not once but twice for the AP not to publish this photograph as well as the Secretary of Defense, on behalf of the family, requesting the same to the AP, and they still ignore their requests? And for all reasons they want to “convey the grimness of war and the sacrifice of young men and women fighting it?” As a US Navy veteran I am insulted by the AP’s stand on this. If you really want to convey the grimness of war then keep reporting from Afghanistan and Iraq. There is nothing wrong with interviewing witnesses and catching some pictures of the areas and battles, but to ignore the pleas of the family is devoid of compassion and ignorant. Would any of these members of the AP want their families to have to view pictures of their dying bodies on television or see them in a newspaper?

If I had passed away when I was deployed, I never would have wanted my parents to see my dying body emblazoned across their television screen or found in the pages of the Akron Beacon-Journal. Where is the integrity and compassion from the AP? If the AP really wants to convey the “sacrifice of the young men and women fighting” the war, then they need to honor the requests of the families of these brave men and women instead of seeking the prestige that comes with getting a published shot. There is more than one way to get your point across without causing someone else pain. It does not matter if they met all standards provided for by the US Military. What matters is that father just lost his son, and wished to not have such a devastating photograph of him posted for the world to see. I believe the American people want news coverage that shows honor, integrity, and compassion. I find a little bit less of it everyday and this only reaffirms it.