Tuesday, October 29, 2019
When Publicity Hurts
Since ancient times, publicizing the names of mass murderers and other evil-doers has been a problem. It stimulates others to do dark deeds. The phenomenon is called social contagion by the scientific community, and it has been a work in America. Mass shooters have become more common. They are aping one another in seeing their names in print and photos on television. Even if they take their own lives in the process of killing others, they know they will live on in infamy. What's the solution? Do what New Zealand recently has done after the mass shooting there. Refuse to publicize the miscreant's name. Let him (It is almost always a male.) plunge into ignominy and anonymity. That removes the temptation to be a star in one's own twisted universe. It might be hard for US media to give up naming mass shooters, but if they understand their motivations, it should be feasible. Why glorify darkness?
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