First, Dr. Nancy Snyderman violated the Ebola Quarantine potentially jeopardizing the public and putting the credibility of NBC News in question.
Then, Brian Williams was suspended from NBC for six months for lying and putting the credibility of NBC News in question again.
Now, NBC News Channel 4 in Los Angeles has been caught editing an eyewitness interview to fit the narration of the police in the shooting of 20-year-old college student Feras Morad, who was unarmed, injured, and in need of medical attention. The way the latest package was edited stomps on the earlier narration provided by eyewitnesses to NBC.
Did the Long Beach Police Department make a phone call to NBC News Channel 4 after the eyewitness accounts were aired and did that contact influence NBC to edit a new piece supporting the police department's narrative and version of events? If so, that move again puts the credibility of NBC News in question.
Watch this video. You decide.
NBC has now released the entire video interview of the eyewitness. NBC stands by their edited story.
All this proves is that everyone agrees: Feras Morad was injured, unarmed, and yet he was still shot four times in the chest by a police officer ending his life.
There are no second chances when someone pulls a trigger. Lives are changed forever by gunfire.
Journalism with creative editing or moving words around to fit one narrative over another is unacceptable. Anyone who has ever worked in the news business knows this absolute rule. You don't rewrite history, you don't reword a police narrative, and you don't reword an eyewitness narrative. You play the interview straight through until the moment you cut away for another part of the story or the reporter's voiceover. You don't edit pieces or words together to make it seem as though that's the way it was said.
I worked in the television and radio news business for many years. I've never seen any kind of respected journalism like this.
There is a poignant scene in the film "Broadcast News" when William Hurt's character produces tears on cue long after conducting an interview and then edits the piece to insert his tears as though they occurred during the interview. With one camera, how did he get the cutaway shot? He didn't. He faked it and edited it together in an effort to manipulate the audience. Holly Hunter's character figures it out and ditches him forever. She won't support that kind of journalistic man-made news. I won't support it either.
It is appalling to reorganize and edit sentences or words from any interview of a witness and publish those words in different places to fit a narrative. This is reprehensible journalism, reporting, and editing. NBC Channel 4 stands by their decision. So, I also stand by my decision. I am done with NBC News. If a news organization supports creative journalism based on editing facts to fit one story, that is no longer authentic journalism. That is creative storytelling. That's what they do in filmmaking, not documentaries.
Meanwhile, there are still so many questions that remain about Feras Morad.
Has the family been officially notified by the Long Beach Police Department that their son is dead? The police department dragged their feet on this issue for far too long. What happened to the 48 hour rule?
Has the police department identified the shooter? No, they have not. Again, what happened to the 48 hour rule in providing a full statement and the name of the officer involved in the shooting? Where is the police department press conference exposing the facts of this story? Where is the recording of the 911 call?
Why has no news organization requested videotapes of the incident be released to the public to show the killing of this young man? Where is the dashcam video? Was the officer wearing a body camera?
Every officer should wear a body camera to provide protection and proof of every incident and how it transpires. The requirement for police officers to wear body cameras should become law in the name of Feras Morad.
The family is still asking for justice. So are Feras Morad's friends and his community of support which is growing by the day on Facebook.
This week: On Wednesday night at 8:00 pm there will be a Candlelight Vigil at Warner Center Park in Woodland Hills to Remember the Life of Feras Morad. Candles will be available for $1 at the gathering. On Thursday evening at 4:00 pm a Rally for Feras will be held at Lincoln Park in Long Beach.
Feras Morad's story is now being shared nationally on the Huffington Post and internationally on the Daily Mail in the UK. But every story published shares a different version. Let's all agree on one version - the truth.
And the truth is that Feras Morad is dead because someone fired a gun. He won't be attending graduation ceremonies for his friends. He won't be going on summer vacation. He won't be starting a new chapter at a new college this fall. He won't be planning his next debate. And he won't become an attorney to stand up against police brutality. Instead, his parents are planning his funeral.
His life had meaning... now please share his story so his death has meaning, too.
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