Why does news media use 13 year old picture of Trayvon Martin?

Discussion in 'Off-Topic Discussions' started by jam937, Mar 30, 2012.

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  1. jam937

    jam937 New Member

    It seems almost all news media outlets are using a picture of Trayvon Martin when he was 13 years old. The fact that Martin was 17 years old not 13 has been known from the very start. More recent pictures of Martin have also been available from very early on.

    Why are news outlets still showing the 13 year old picture?

    Are they just stirring up the public to raise ratings?
    Are they pushing their political agenda?
    Are they trying to hide a more accurate image of Martin?
    Why don't they use a picture of Zimmerman when he was thirteen?

    Is there any reason in which you think they should use the 13 year old picture of Martin instead of the more accurate 17 year old picture?
     
  2. GeneralSnus

    GeneralSnus Member

    Well, these photos were taken 9 days before his death. I'm not sure what difference it would make if one were intent on "stirring up the public" or "pushing their political agenda" if they used these photos or the photo of him as a 13 year old.

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  3. Bruce

    Bruce Moderator

    To foment public outrage to sell papers and advertising revenues, of course.

    I'm sure the media's only lament is that it wasn't a white police officer who shot young Trayvon.
     
  4. Ian Anderson

    Ian Anderson Active Member

    There is a story on this very topic in the Denver Post today.
    Not only is the Martin picture some years old (it was supplied to the media by his family) the photo of Zimmerman is also 5-years old (it was from a previous arrest and was available from police files).
     
  5. friendorfoe

    friendorfoe Active Member

    Yep, there is definite media bias on this. Another thing that has driven my wife crazy is why they keep calling Zimmerman "white" when in fact he is Hispanic (my wife is also Hispanic and some of her family is sensitive about being called "white").

    Race baiting sells. Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton both make a living off of this stuff. If racism were to end today they would be irrelevant almost as quickly as they'd be unemployed. "Moral outrage" is also a great way to get readership, viewership, etc. and can be spun into political hay for making donation gold. Lastly, nothing distracts from a miserable economy, a GOP nominee and gas prices gouging your personal wealth than a fabricated "racially motivated" shooting.

    On the flip side, anyone hear about the kid set on fire for being "white" or the rash of other black on white crime? Probably not, huh...
     
  6. 03310151

    03310151 Active Member

    The same reason that media edits 911 calls to make them sound more sensational, to get the proles worked up and distracted. I don't trust a thing at all coming from either side of this fiasco. Bias, bias, bias. If you think this Hispanic dude is going to get anything close to a fair trial...
     
  7. Ted Heiks

    Ted Heiks Moderator and Distinguished Senior Member

    Got a link?
     
  8. jam937

    jam937 New Member

    Here's the link. I think it happened around the first of March. We don't know all the facts yet.

    Black 16 year olds light 13 year old white boy on fire who was walking home from school
    Teenagers poured gasoline on boy walking home from school and set him on fire: cops  - NY Daily News

    "They rushed him on the porch as he tried to get the door open," Coon told KMBC. "(One of them) poured the gasoline, then flicked the Bic, and said, 'This is what you deserve. You get what you deserve, white boy.'"
     
  9. Ted Heiks

    Ted Heiks Moderator and Distinguished Senior Member

    Did the white boy manage to survive?
     
  10. jam937

    jam937 New Member

    NBC runs edited 911 audio that has Zimmerman saying "This guy looks like he's up to no good ... he looks black."

    But the audio recording in its entirety reveals that Zimmerman did not volunteer the information that Martin was black.

    A transcript of the complete 911 call shows that Zimmerman said, "This guy looks like he's up to no good. Or he's on drugs or something. It's raining and he's just walking around, looking about."

    The 911 officer responded saying, "OK, and this guy — is he black, white or Hispanic?"

    "He looks black," Zimmerman said.

    NBC launches internal probe over edited 911 call in Trayvon Martin shooting - NYPOST.com


    This is why we can't believe msNBC's story by itself where it sounds like Zimmerman said "punk" but then msNBC "edits" the audio and then it sound's like Zimmerman said a racial slur. We don't know what their "edits" did to the audio. Plus msNBC says they can't say for certain that is what he said. But guess what? Now all you hear is Zimmerman used racial slurs. A Google news search for "zimmerman racial slur" found 1,950 results based on "edited" audio tapes from msNBC.
     
  11. jam937

    jam937 New Member

    The article says the 13 year old is recovering from first-degree burns to his face and head and that police are concerned the boy may have suffered damage to his eyes and lungs. His face is probably scarred for life.
     
  12. Ted Heiks

    Ted Heiks Moderator and Distinguished Senior Member

    OK. I didn't read the weblink until after I posed the question.
     
  13. friendorfoe

    friendorfoe Active Member

    When describing the suspect in any suspicious person race will always be a contributing factor...not for profiling reasons but simple identification. How is MSNBC not somehow liable to Zimmerman for what they are doing? I mean listening to the 2 tapes it's dang near criminal misrepresentation of the truth. These guys have about as much credibility as the National Enquirer...meanwhile you have real hate crimes going on (like the kid set on fire) and nary a word of it. No protests, politicians, celebrities, etc. Sometimes this country makes me sick. I'm sorry, I know it's un-American to say that but the racial tensions (which were supposed to be eliminated by Obama so I was told when he got elected) have not been this bad since the LA Riots following Rodney King.
     
  14. Ian Anderson

    Ian Anderson Active Member

    I read of terrible acts to humans by "humans" such as dragging them, driving into them, and shooting/stabbing them and the news only makes the local media, not the national media. I do not know why it is only the occasional act that makes national headlines.

    But I do know that the media is often clueless when reporting in my areas of expertise.

    I also see that the media is making something out of the fact Zimmerman was handcuffed during his ride to the police station. I some California cities (if not the entire state) a "person of interest" must be handcuffed when being transported in a police car.
     
  15. Bruce

    Bruce Moderator

    ^^^^This.

    The mainstream media is absolutely shameless when it comes to inflaming racial tensions for profit. The shenanigans pulled by MSNBC is not near criminal misrepresentation, it IS criminal misrepresentation. They have literally put Zimmerman's life in danger by deliberately trying to portray him as a racist, and even if they issue a full retraction and an apology, the damage is already done. I for one hope Zimmerman sues them into oblivion, if for no other reason that bad behavior has to be punished so it won't happen again.
     
  16. 03310151

    03310151 Active Member

    The shitty thing of it all is that in any other case Zimmerman is part of the protected professional indignation class. As a registered Democrat (Zimmerman) has to feel like his party are Benedict Arnold. Hispanics will learn their place:

    1. Gays
    2. Blacks
    3. Hispanics (+2 points if you are illegal however)
    4. Women
    5. The rest of us...

    Maybe this Christian school shooting is the Great White Defendant the media is looking for. At the very least they can blame it on all you nasty horrible racist homophobic racist Christians.
     
  17. friendorfoe

    friendorfoe Active Member


    The morons at large and within the media however seem to think it's only a matter of saying "I think he's guilty, let's arrest him again" when in fact they impede progress in the investigation through all this speculation and circumstancial evidence even to the point of fabricating evidence and swaying public opinion so hard you could make a case for witness tampering. They are not helping their "cause". They need to allow a grand jury hearing of all the evidence (as we do in Texas assuming Florida is similar) and get a LEGAL FINDING for a Bill (charged) or No Bill (not charged...which is not the same as innocent). THEN start speculating, etc. But this race baiting is dividing the country and really hurting people in the process.

    Also I should point out that technically Zimmerman was "arrested" in the purest legal sense but not charged. Demanding his arrest again (or detainment or whatever) without enough evidence to formulate a charge is not only un-Constitutional it's also highly unproductive.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 3, 2012
  18. GeneralSnus

    GeneralSnus Member

    Who told you that?
     
  19. DLer

    DLer New Member

    There is speculation that the "real hate crime" that you are referring too was fabricated. That is probably why there are no protests, politicians or celebrities getting involved.
    Read all of the responses
    Media tiptoes around the black-on-white burning of Allen Coon | PoliNation

    It appears that "race baiting" has many faces....
     
  20. Kizmet

    Kizmet Moderator

    One thing we know for sure is that none of us has all the facts in this case. There is both a local and a federal investigation in process. It's all under the microscope. Under these conditions I am comfortable with letting people do their respective jobs. The truth (or whatever counts as the closest approximation of the truth) will come out.
     

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