Boston Marathon Media Coverage

Lots of things about the Tsarnaev brothers remain unknown, but as more facts about them and why they allegedly planted bombs at one of the largest US marathons become available, what role do the media play? This hour on Focus, we’ll talk with Bob Garfield, co-host of the program “On the Media” about journalistic ethics and when personal facts about someone’s life like race, ethnicity and religion should matter to a story. We’ll also talk about accuracy and some problems new media created in misidentifying the alleged bombers’ identities. Brant Houston, the Knight Chair Professor in Investigative and Enterprise Reporting at the University of Illinois College of Media also joins us.

Several major news organizations misreported certain aspects of this case and had to make corrections. Does that cause you to question the facts they report moving forward? Post in the comments section below or find us on Facebook and Twitter @Focus580.