Roadside Memorial

[Nagala]

I had to cover a story where three 16-year-olds were killed in a car accident, one of them on his 16th birthday. It was a horrible assignment.

 

[photogoddess]

Awwww! How horrible! You captured such a sad moment. :cry:

 

[Alison]

That must have been a very difficult assignment. Your picture is beautifully done.

 

[Corry]

Aw, that's too bad. Not to turn this into even more of a depressing thead, but one of my old classmates was killed on his 21st birthday. It does really seem to make it that much more sad. Then it makes it even harder when his killer gets off scott free. Ok...no more depressing talk. That is a very emotional picture. You did a very good job.

 

[Islander]

Like everyone said, good job. Just a very sad moment. Let them rest in peace.

 

[2Stupid2Duck]

Fantastic job - captured the emotion beautifully. It left me quite moved to be honest.

*wipes a little tear away.

 

[mentos_007]

great picture... very deep and tells the story...

 

[Karalee]

Wow, a picture definately paints 1,000 words

 

[SWFLA1]

I personally think that pictures like this should be illegal.... I lost my son at 17 - same thing, the driver of the car he was in fell asleep and hit a tree... it about made me puke when the media made an intensely personal moment public simply to sell papers....

 

[santino]

Oh I'm so sorry. I can imagine what you feel about that pic.

 

[blacktypes]

Like everyone said, good job. Just a very sad moment. Let them rest in peace.

nothing else to add

 

[blacktypes]

Like everyone said, good job. Just a very sad moment. Let them rest in peace.

nothing else to add

 

[Nagala]

SWFLA1, I certainly respect your opinion and understand completely where you're coming from. To families these things happen to, seeing it in print can feel like a double tragedy. But we didn't run the story to sell papers. That story was HARD, both emotionally and physically. I never push anyone. Sometimes, they want to talk about the person. Other times, they want to be left alone and that is certainly fine. I cried WITH the woman in that picture as she spoke to me about her relationship with one of the children. She spoke because she trusted me, and I owned up to my responsibility of a human being first.
Now the "why."
Over the past few months, our state nearly tripled the record for teenagers dying in automobile accidents. I took a day off after this story to emotionally recoup. The day I came back, a 17-year-old was killed in another accident and I had to cover that one, too. So did printing the first story help prevent further accidents? Some could argue no, but that accident was entirely different. My point is that we write about the tragedies not to sell papers but to at least try to let people know what's going on (at least on the editorial level). I'm sorry about your loss. I hope I haven't come across wrong.

Edit: If anyone would like to read the story, I can post it when I get home.

 

[SWFLA1]

I am not upset with you... I typed a 4 paragraph response, but decided to simply say that I DO know exactly what they are going through, and you DON'T understand completely....and to be honest, I hope you never have to.