WHEELER writes:

I’m sure by now you’ve seen the reports of the black man who allegedly shot two former coworkers on live TV.

Have you seen the Fox News interview with Alison Parker’s boyfriend and father? It’s very eerie, and very similar to some of the Sandy Hook stuff. I keep trying to imagine if my daughter were murdered by some rage-filled maladroit with whom she used to work….would my demeanor and bearing be like this man’s? If my girlfriend, with whom I shared a portion of my life, were cut down while doing her job….would my demeanor and bearing be like this young man’s?

And would I, under such fresh grief, be moved to make political speeches about gun control and “what needs to be done” under the prompting of the interviewer?

All of the answers to my questions in my own mind are a resounding “no.”

This is very creepy.

Laura writes:

Thank you for your comments.

While I can’t imagine appearing on air like this the day after a son or daughter was murdered, and I understand your finding it unnatural, I do not think this exchange resembles the Sandy Hook interviews. Those parents, in several cases, actually smiled after their children were allegedly gunned down. Remember the mother talking about coloring on her daughter’s coffin with a  big smile on her face?

This was an especially gruesome and vengeful murder, done with the intent to maximize humiliation of the victims.

Alison Parker’s father says he did not want to be interviewed. But the reason he agreed (why Fox News even puts family members through this is another question) was that his daughter was a journalist and he felt obligated. He also is on the verge of tears several times. The boyfriend is a television anchorman who is used to appearing on camera. He is not very emotional but he seems mildly enraged a couple of times and defends her against charges of racism. (A minor point: it’s sad that cohabitation is so common that people admit to it on air like this when they could keep it private.)

In summary, this is different from some of the very odd interviews after Sandy Hook and the Charleston shooting. Most importantly, there is undeniable evidence that the victims were shot to death.

Laura adds:

As far as the gun control comments, Vester Lee Flanagan, the alleged killer, could have murdered these two people with a knife. What is reprehensible is not so much that this father addresses this issue, but that politicians do, exploiting a murder to promote the disarming of the American people. Although I agree with Wheeler that it is creepy to see the father express no outrage or anger toward the killer himself.

Flanagan was bitter and enraged, saying he was the victim of racial discrimination even though he reportedly had worked at TV stations in Texas, Georgia, North Carolina and California. Given his unstable behavior, his unprofessionalism and that he was fired before, one cannot help but suspect that he was not a victim of racial discrimination but of racial favoritism. He exhibited bizarre behavior and aggression when he worked in Florida, where he filed a racial discrimination suit, and yet he was hired by the Virginia station, WDBJ.

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