“If it bleeds, it leads.” This is what my mass media teacher, Rex Haviland, said to a room of about 20-some Ben Davis High School students about what makes the news.
Haviland, who is a former television and radio anchor, explained to us that, more often than not, stories that involve some sort of violent or tragic occurrence will make the top of the television broadcast, while more “positive” stories would be pushed further back in the lineup. Back then, it sounded so barbaric … so inhuman. My classmates and I couldn’t believe this was the case in the career field many of us were eager to get into. Fast-forward a decade later, and that lesson still resonates with me.
Black death, and death in general, oftentimes leads the headlines. It also leads opportunists of all sort and type looking to fashion themselves as saviors of the poor, colored and uncivilized.
Last Sunday, more than 80 Black-owned businesses gathered on the grounds of the Flanner House for the inaugural Black-Owned Business Block Party. Throughout the course of the event, thousands of people patronized the vendors, networked with one another and enjoyed the live music performed by local artists. I showed up, with a stack of Recorders in tow, and was promptly helped to a booth by a group of volunteers. You know that saying, time flies when you’re having fun? That perfectly summed up my experience. It was a beautiful sight to see, and if you ask anyone who was in attendance, they would share similar sentiments. The event ended a little after 5 p.m., and people began to leave the area.
Sadly, hours later, tragedy struck and three people were shot near 25th Street and MLK. One young man, 26-year-old Christopher Shannon Joseph, was killed. On television Sunday evening, several news outlets reported that there was a block party taking place at the time of the shooting.
While this may not be technically inaccurate (there were several vendors not associated with the Flanner House event stationed up and down the block), it is a bit irresponsible. According to the event organizers, a press release was sent out to every major news outlet in town alerting them of the occasion and inviting them to cover it. Though it was covered and/or attended by a handful of outlets (Radio One, Recorder, RadioNext, Midwest Leak, The Hype and others) none of the majors were in attendance, though several of them reported on the violence.
A slew of community leaders were upset by this and voiced their disdain on social media for the lack of balance exhibited, as well as the instances of inaccurate reporting. One post, written by event organizer Dominic Dorsey of DON’T SLEEP, was shared hundreds of times on Facebook Monday morning — no doubt gaining the attention of one television outlet, which attempted to make right its wrong by interviewing him and other community residents. Dorsey shared that he and his team want to address the root causes of violence in our community by attacking systemic ills, such as food access and poverty.
I applaud the outlets that attempted to get the story straight, but it shouldn’t take hundreds of people screaming in outrage for this to be the case. Yes, there is a lot of violent activity in Indianapolis. Yes, these things should be covered in the media. There is also a ton of community building and redevelopment happening on a grassroots level. There are so many people who are working actively day after day to outwardly exhibit the love they have for this city and its inhabitants. This work needs to be covered as much as, if not more than, the blood and gore we’re used to.
Rev. Charles Harrison of Ten Point Coalition, who was interviewed following Sunday’s shooting, remarked, “When people try to have events, sometimes the youngsters come. When the young people come, they normally bring the drama with them.”
These generalizations, though highly disappointing, are not out of the ordinary for Harrison. I have already publicized my feelings about him and his work, so I won’t rehash that here. Sidebar: Harrison was not in attendance at Flanner House on Sunday; he and his team were taking the day off. I get it; we all need some time to recharge. What I don’t get is why out of all the things he could have said, he felt compelled to make those particular comments to the media.
Following his statements, a digital “drag session” commenced. Community activists, concerned citizens and others reached out to Harrison on Twitter, asking him to clarify his statements. Some clergy reached out as well, seeking to have a one-on-one meeting with him. Many of these remarks weren’t ugly or disrespectful. Nonetheless, his response was to conduct a block party of his own. He blocked nearly every person who reached out to him on Twitter. As a community leader, critique is a part of the job function. This should have been handled differently.
Currently, there is an effort to organize a sit-down with Harrison and other community activists. I do hope this “come to Jesus” meeting happens soon. I also learned that some contact had been made between Dorsey and Harrison. I am glad to hear it, and I hope that conversations of this sort continue. There is entirely too much at stake from both a micro and macro perspective. If the majors are going to continue positioning Harrison as the lead voice of the Black community (a decision I personally disagree with), it is high time that he at least learn to accurately represent the people.
