In the wake of the June 28 murders at the Capital Gazette offices in Annapolis, we join the community in mourning the deaths of fellow members of our profession—also known as “the Fourth Estate.” This last in a long string of mass killings at the hands of extremely agitated individuals especially hits home for all of us at What's Up? Annapolis.
Why? Because, given the hazard of possibly and unintentionally rubbing someone the wrong way in our reporting, it could have been any of us. Especially considering the current climate in this country, in which some elected officials and others label anything counter to their own opinions as “fake news,” it seems not too much of a stretch that what happened at 888 Bestgate Road could happen in media newsrooms and editorial offices anywhere.
The names of the fallen whose bylines appeared regularly in the Capital are familiar to all who read the paper. The fact that a morning edition was printed immediately after the attack speaks volumes about the essence of dedicated reporting. That's what real journalists do. The best ones run toward a story and not away from it—no matter the imposition or the danger.
We can only hope that events such as what happened yesterday will not deter any of the diligent reporters who regularly shed light on and interpret events that have an impact on the lives of so many. May those who lost their lives on June 28 not have died in vain.
Frederick Schultz
