Crime News

Here’s How TV News Is Covering the Deadly Shooting at the Capital Gazette in Maryland

By A.J. Katz 

Five employees of the Capital Gazette newspaper were shot dead this afternoon in their own newsroom, and several more are wounded.

This tragedy took place inside the building of the Capital Gazette, – a newspaper in Annapolis, Md. that’s owned by The Baltimore Sun – at around 3 p.m. ET. The gunman is presently in custody.

 

Advertisement

“We’re doing everything we can to get people out safe and we’re trying to minimize the casualties,” Lt. Ryan Frashure, a spokesman for Anne Arundel County Police, told reporters.

Fox News was the first cable news network to report the news of the shooting, doing so at 3:10 p.m. ET. Ironically because this transpired during the 3 p.m. hour, the network’s breaking news anchor Shepard Smith was already on the air to report the news.

Here’s what Smith had to say:

 These are live pictures at the Capital Gazette in Annapolis Md.,. we had reports of an active shooter. That was the initial report. reports of a shooting at a building in Maryland. It’s home to one of the nation’s oldest newspapers. You can see the law enforcement coming together outside. We have just gotten word from the sheriff that — this is confirmed now but Fox News — that there are multiple fatalities at this location. Reports of the shooting at the offices of near Washington D.C. at the offices of the Capital Gazette newspaper. This is Annapolis, Md., I have just learned with you that there are multiple fatalities now reported at this location. I must tell you, hardly a day goes by in recent memory that there’s not a report of an active shooter somewhere. They come in so often that most like — most often we spend a lot of time ferreting them out before mentioning them to you. Today we hoped that was the case here. Instead, we have got word from the sheriff that they have multiple fatalities.

CNN’s Ana Cabrera announced the news at 3:16 p.m. ET:

Baltimore Sun reporting there’s been a shooting at a newspaper building in Annapolis, Md., this is apparently at the Capital Gazette building. you can see where that is on the map. we have live pictures now in Annapolis, Md. Very few details now…

Cabrera then brought in CNN law enforcement analyst Josh Campbell, who is former FBI.

MSNBC’s Ali Velshi announced the news at 3:18 p.m. ET:

There has been an active shooter situation in Annapolis, Md. We are just getting information in on this now. That is the scene, it is the Capital Gazette building in Annapolis Md., that you are looking at. The Capital Gazette is a newspaper. It is owned by the same owners at the Baltimore Sun. It is the local paper having to do with Annapolis, Annapolis is the capital…

NBC News correspondent Tom Costello then joined Velshi live from Washington.

HLN’s Michaela Pereira reported the news at 3:24 p.m. ET:

 I want to show you breaking news we are keeping an eye on. there are reports out of Annapolis, Md., that the ATF is responding to a shooting, a shooting incident at the Capital Gazette. A reporter with the paper itself said multiple people have been shot. The Capital Gazette which is the paper owned by The Baltimore Sun, by the way, is located in the Capital. We are working to get more developments and provide updates. This is a tweet from the parent company of The Capital Gazette: “We are investigating reports of an incident at the capital-gazette building in the 800-block of Bestgate road in Annapolis. We will share them as we get them.” This is what we are seeing from one of the local affiliates in Maryland, a helicopter. It looks as though it transported someone, air lifted someone. There’s a lot of law enforcement presence and ambulances and fire teams there. So, again, some sort of shooting, reports of at The Capital Gazette newspaper in Annapolis, Md. There’s two helicopters on site. We will watch it, get more details and pass it on to you.

CBS Evening News anchor Jeff Glor broke in with a CBS News special report at 3:41 p.m. ET:

There has been a deadly shooting in a newspaper office in Annapolis, the Capital Gazette. We are following it this hour. Four people have been killed, we’re told. A suspect is now in custody. The Gazette is owned by the Baltimore Sun Media Group. Police are now at the scene of that shooting at the gazette. We’re also told they’re at the offices of the parent newspaper, The Baltimore Sun, but you’re seeing the scene right now. 

Glor was then joined by CBS News justice correspondent Jeff Pegues.

At 3:43 p.m. ET, Lester Holt anchored an NBC News Special Report on the shooting:

We’re coming on the air with breaking news. a shooting this afternoon in Annapolis, Md. A newspaper owned by The Baltimore Sun. There are no word of the conditions of those shots or numbers. ATF and other officers are on the scene. The building is being searched by police. There’s no confirmation of the number of shooters or if anyone is in custody.

Holt was joined by NBC News correspondent Tom Costello from D.C. At 4:38 p.m. ET, Holt again anchored a special report as officials held a press conference on the shooting. Garrett Haake, MSNBC correspondent, joined from Annapolis. At 5:36 p.m. ET, Holt anchored another NBC News Special Report as officials gave another briefing on the shooting in Annapolis. Also joining the report was Kristen Welker, NBC News White House correspondent, from the White House.

At 3:50 p.m. ET. World News Tonight anchor David Muir broke in with an ABC News Special Report, with reporting and analysis by chief justice correspondent Pierre Thomas and contributor Brad Garrett. Muir anchored a second special report at 4:37 p.m. ET to cover the press conferences.

Update: CBS This Morning’s Norah O’Donnell and CBS News national correspondent Chip Reid are reporting from Annapolis Friday morning.

 

Advertisement