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03-Apr-1997 Thursday
The mass suicide in North County's revered, well-to-do community of
Rancho Santa Fe launched a media circus. Vying for the scoop, local
news teams misinformed us, passing along information that was only
speculation. Later, the Sheriff's Department foolishly handed over its
videotape for the media to exploit.
Every major TV station broadcast the dim video of the masked deputy
making his rounds, pointing to the victims' spotless new shoe soles
and
neatly-folded glasses, like a scientist chronicling the results of his
macabre experiments in a low-budget movie.
Did the public really want to see this? I believe the answer is no.
And
what of the victims' families? As if the deaths of their loved ones
weren't shocking enough, the insensitive coverage must have proved
further devastating.
The print media published detailed graphs, explaining gender and
state-of-origin statistics. Diagrams filled the news pages: maps of
the
home, what bodies were where, in what beds and position.
Did we need all of this? I couldn't help jesting at this catastrophe
turned circus. The magnitude of such a tragedy left my senses awry.
But as I read through the off-shooting articles, coverage from every
angle and connection, the sensationalism made me sick.
What comes next? I can almost see the trading cards now: the Hale-Bopp
to Heaven's Gate Collection. And what of those diagrams and victims'
photographs? Were they printed for the toy spoofers to copy and profit
from?
Instead of Hooker Barbie, will we have Hale-Bopp Shaved Head Barbie
and "Do" Ken? Maybe they'll come with play sets; Million Dollar
Morgue, and Beyond Human -- Hale-Bopp Space Ship to Heaven.
The tragedy that left 39 humans dead should be looked at for what it
is: a sad symptom of our society that should be analyzed. The media
only touched on the danger of cults, and why people join them.
Are cults like Heaven's Gate simply another form of the gangs so
prevalent today? Members claim the groups provide them with a sense of
belonging.
If so, then why are so many persons searching for a family outside (in
this case way out) of the traditional realm? And how can their needs
be filled before they resort to joining doomsday and suicide cults to
find purpose and fulfillment? These are the questions the media should
be focusing on.
Please, no more diagrams and charts. No more haunted-house film tours.
No more images of medical-examiner employees loading bodies into
refrigerated trucks. Let's give these victims and their families some
dignity, and find answers that will prevent these tragedies instead.
Article as it appeared in the April 3, 1997
issue of the San Diego Union Tribune |
