Amanda Knox, suspect: let the media firestorm begin
The European tabloids are having a field day with this one.
Amanda Knox (pictured, right), a Seattle native and University of Washington student currently studying abroad in Italy, has been arrested in connection with the sexual assault and murder of her housemate, Meredith Kercher. The local press is all over it as well, as in-depth articles have appeared in both The Seattle Times and the P-I.
I won't go into the specifics of the case here: the P-I and Times articles are plenty detailed when it comes to balanced reporting, and for good old-fashioned sensationalist news, check out the Times Online, the Daily Mail, and any other British papers you can get ahold of. They're doing journalism the way it used to be: seedy, exciting, and yellow as hell. The latest twist, according to the Times Online? That Kercher was killed after "refusing to take part in a violent orgy." (God, this case is going to sell a lot of newspapers).
What is worth noting is the slew of Knox defenders jumping on her critics, despite the fact that the suspect, according to the articles I've read so far, has already "confessed to playing a role in the slaying." Italian authorities have yet to announce exactly what that role is.
After Monica Guzman wrote an update on it in the P-I's Big Blog (special kudos to Ms. Guzman for being the first blogger I found linking to Knox's MySpace page), a wave of comments - many from people claiming to be friends of the suspect - flooded in.
Some of the highlights (emphasis in each comment has been added by the Seattle Crime Blogger):
later this evening tomorrow. Stay tuned...the Seattle Crime Blog will be covering this story closely.
Amanda Knox (pictured, right), a Seattle native and University of Washington student currently studying abroad in Italy, has been arrested in connection with the sexual assault and murder of her housemate, Meredith Kercher. The local press is all over it as well, as in-depth articles have appeared in both The Seattle Times and the P-I.
I won't go into the specifics of the case here: the P-I and Times articles are plenty detailed when it comes to balanced reporting, and for good old-fashioned sensationalist news, check out the Times Online, the Daily Mail, and any other British papers you can get ahold of. They're doing journalism the way it used to be: seedy, exciting, and yellow as hell. The latest twist, according to the Times Online? That Kercher was killed after "refusing to take part in a violent orgy." (God, this case is going to sell a lot of newspapers).
What is worth noting is the slew of Knox defenders jumping on her critics, despite the fact that the suspect, according to the articles I've read so far, has already "confessed to playing a role in the slaying." Italian authorities have yet to announce exactly what that role is.
After Monica Guzman wrote an update on it in the P-I's Big Blog (special kudos to Ms. Guzman for being the first blogger I found linking to Knox's MySpace page), a wave of comments - many from people claiming to be friends of the suspect - flooded in.
Some of the highlights (emphasis in each comment has been added by the Seattle Crime Blogger):
- One unregistered user left this gem as comment #63873: "There is also no reason for the (London) Times reporter to e-mail Amanda's friends, including myself, for interviews. I dislike the notion of him tracking down my e-mail from links on Amanda's Facebook profile. [...] Amanda doesn't deserve this media maelstrom." Are you serious? Has this commenter been living under a rock for the past four years? Welcome to the world of the Internet, baby. If you don't like the idea of being discovered through your Facebook profile...then don't have a Facebook profile.
- Another unregistered user, following up with comment #63880, gave a more reasonable response: "It doesnt matter if you know her or not, if she's commited or aided in the killing of a housemate then why doesnt she deserve this media "maelstrom"? [...] Im disgusted that some of you are more worried about this suspect's reputation rather than the feelings of the family of friends of a murdered girl." Well said, despite the wave of spelling and grammar errors. If Knox is in fact involved, the idea that her reputation is more important than due process reeks of subliminal ethnocentrism.
- In response to all of the claims that Amanda is a nice person who could never commit murder, the most recent comment as of 10 a.m. - also from an unregistered user - sums it up quite succinctly: "They say Ted Bundy seemed like an awful nice guy too. Ya just never know." Appearances can be deceiving. It'll be interesting to watch this situation develop, and to find out more about just who Amanda Knox really is. I don't know where I stand on the case at this point...it's still too early to tell. But before anyone defends (or attacks) Amanda Knox, we should wait for more details to emerge.
