It has been some time since a local story has upset me as much as learning on Sunday that former Channel 4 TV reporter Suzanne Wangler had died of an apparent suicide. Though I did not know her, I know many who did. Regardless, it is a terrible, terrible tragedy.
Many are asking: Did recent media coverage of her on-going life-challenges contribute to her taking her own life? The incident, for me, recalled the 2006 suicide of a Dallas-area District Attorney after being caught in an NBC” ‘To Catch a Predator” sting with reporter Chris Hansen.
There is no denying that those that break the law should be dealt with in a court of law. But should incidents such as these be paraded in the news? When does journalism cross the line into sensationalism?
Questions that should be debated and examined closely. No life is worth trading for a front page headline or extra rating points.