Reporter And Photographer Shot, Killed During Live TV News Report In Virginia


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ugh, what is wrong with people these days.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/26/us/virginia-shooting-wdbj/index.html

(CNN)WDBJ reporter Alison Parker was interviewing a woman about a local story out of Franklin County, Virginia, at approximately 6:45 a.m. Wednesday when the shots rang out and both women screamed.

As the camera fell to the ground, the audience got the briefest glimpse of a man who appeared to pointing a gun toward the downed cameraman.

The station cut away to a shocked anchor, Kimberly McBroom, back in the studio.

The reporter, Alison Parker, 24, and photographer Adam Ward, 27, were both killed in the shooting at Bridgewater Plaza near Moneta, the station reported later.

The gunman is believed to have fired six or seven times, WDBJ General Manager Jeff Marks said.

"We do not know the motive. We do not know who the killer is," Marks said. "We do know the Franklin County sheriff ... they are working very diligently to track down both the motive and the person responsible for this terrible crime against two fine journalists," he said during the station's coverage of the shooting.

The station does not believe that the interview subject was injured, Marks said.

"Our hearts are broken," Marks said on air, explaining that Parker's and Ward's colleagues are "holding back tears."

McBroom described Parker as a "rock star" and said, "You throw anything at that girl and she could do it."

Another journalist at the anchor's desk said Ward was engaged to be married to morning show producer at WDBJ and Ward recently told her, "I'm going to get out of news. I think I'm going to do something else."

Parker is the morning reporter for the Roanoke station and a native of Virginia, having spent most of her life outside Martinsville. She started with WDBJ as an intern, her biography on the station's website says.

She previously worked with another CNN affiliate, WCTI, in Jacksonville, North Carolina, near Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune.

She is a graduate of James Madison University's School of Media Arts and Design in Harrisonburg.

 

 

:(

 

 

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ugh, what is wrong with people these days.

 

 

Not to diminish the severity of the situation, or the tragedy of any lives injured / loss, but over the past few decades violent crime has gone down.  
In the era of instant communication and news bringing you the exception to the norm on a constant basis, your view can be shifted to think this is regular normal, and loss faith in humanity. 

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I've always been surprised this hasn't happened earlier in the USA... news crews are always doing live shots, it's so easy for it to of happened... don't know if it has happened before but this is the first case I've heard of in my life

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I've always been surprised this hasn't happened earlier in the USA... news crews are always doing live shots, it's so easy for it to of happened... don't know if it has happened before but this is the first case I've heard of in my life

Ya i've always wondered what has stopped wacho's from shooting people live on TV.

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Whats even worse is that, one of the reporters was engaged to someone working at the station, who potentially was was watching the interview as it happened.  Can't even imagine what that must have been like. 

 

Now they are saying possible disgruntled employee

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Ya i've always wondered what has stopped wacho's from shooting people live on TV.

I have too actually, I'm surprised reporters don't bring armed security officers, I hoping if anything comes out this tragedy it's that TV crews need armed security personal to go out with them.

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I have too actually, I'm surprised reporters don't bring armed security officers, I hoping if anything comes out this tragedy it's that TV crews need armed security personal to go out with them.

very high profile ones do a lot... like the Today show has police and security escorts for their big names, Lauer, Roaker, Guffrey, etc...

suspect's name is  Vester Flanagan

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very high profile ones do a lot... like the Today show has police and security escorts for their big names, Lauer, Roaker, Guffrey, etc...

suspect's name is  Vester Flanagan

"Suspect identified as Vester Flanagan. Former WDBJ employee says he worked there as a reporter using the name Bryce Williams but was fired."

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wonder if he was fired for lieing about who he was and she was the one who pointed it out? he went by the name Bryce Williams there but vester at another station

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it's amazing no one noticed him holding a gun out or even that he was there... they were so stuck in the inverview

They must have been in the zone.

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