When Black people are killed by the police, the images of their deaths go viral. The graphic photos and videos spread on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and news broadcasts in a matter of minutes.
One benefit of tragedy's exponential spread on social media means that more people will see it, and perhaps people will be held accountable because of it. However, the constant reply of Black death can not only desensitize society, but traumatize Black people.
The SPJ Code of Ethics prioritizes one code above all else: seek truth and report it. What happens if that truth is exploited for clicks and ratings?
According to an article by Monnica T. Williams, a clinical psychologist and the director of the Center for Mental Health Disparities at the University of Louisville, racism can cause PTSD-like symptoms. She said Black people are surrounded by reminders of race-related danger.
"We might see clips on the nightly news featuring unarmed African Americans being killed on the street, in a holding cell, or even in a church. Learning of these events brings up an array of painful racially-charged memories, and what has been termed “vicarious traumatization," she said in an article for Psychology Today. "Even if the specific tragic news item has never happened to us directly, we may have had parents or aunts who have had similar experiences, or we know people in our community who have, and their stories have been passed down."
When Derek Chauvin killed George Floyd, the video of the horrific incident was replayed on the nightly news over and over again. Who is in charge of lining up that footage for an evening broadcast?
Melanye Price, a political scientist that focuses on contemporary black politics, public opinion and public rhetoric, wrote an opinion story for The New York Times asking people to stop sharing the video of George Floyd's death.
"These videos are necessary not only because they generate outrage among whites, outrage that is ever-present for African-Americans. But also because the political leaders empowered to stop this are not outraged enough," Price said.
"I don’t know if it’s ethical, though, to repeatedly show and share what are essentially snuff films with African-American protagonists."
Price said if white people and non-Black people need to watch videos of Black death over and over again to believe Black people are brutalized, they either refuse to learn or are "content with the violence."
Journalists should be wary of over sharing content that would re-traumatize Black people and contribute to more distress from racism.
This is something I have caught on to recently. As a black woman, I made the decision a few months back to cut back on the amount of black trauma I witness through media. However, what I had not consider was that if I have reached this point, how many other African-American viewers have as well? It's truly a hard topic to consider. After all, the distribution of such videos has shined a light on overshadowed discussions regarding racism and police brutality. This has further allowed social and even legislative changes that we most likely would not have seen without it. However, it has all been at the cost of a constant reminder to black Americans that our life will always be at risk as a result of our race. How do we decide when it is and isn't appropriate to take this step?
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