The owner of the apartment where the alleged San Bernardino shooters lived allowed several media outlets to go rampaging through their apartment, in what can only be described as a cable news feeding frenzy.
Personal belongings of the alleged shooters were laying all around, including personally identifying material of both them and their family members.
MSNBC held up a CA drivers license belonging to Farook’s mother without covering up sensitive information:
MSNBC just doxed Rafia Farook, mother of a terrorist, on live television. I've blurred the important bits. pic.twitter.com/VqPwT60yVY
— David Boles (@DavidBoles) December 4, 2015
“We have quite a number of photographs here, but we don’t know, we don’t know if it’s [the shooter],” Kerry Sander said, as MSNBC anchor Andrea Mitchell commented in the studio.
MSNBC basically filming storage wars with the shooters apt. WATTBA
— Desus Nice (@desusnice) December 4, 2015
Desus frames this well. The lack of etiquette or ethics was deplorable. Literally it was tabloid trash tv.
CNN went on to show material from within the home of a less personally identifiable nature, like childrens’ toys. Their own law enforcement analyst called them out on their crassness.
CNN's law enforcement analyst appears shocked by what CNN's reporters (and other reporters) are doing.
— Nick Confessore (@nickconfessore) December 4, 2015
It went quickly downhill from there. Another woman was seen taking her child into the scene while reporters were still rummaging about inside.
CNN saying now that "not solely members of the media" now roaming the apartment, including a "woman with a dog"
— John Koblin (@koblin) December 4, 2015
And now, there is a dog too…
To say this is a breach of ethics is putting it in a very favorable light. This is downright illegal, and the people whose personal information was found and broadcasted, likely have a killer of a lawsuit waiting to happen.
You are probably wondering, “But, they said the landlord let them in. It must be ok, right?” No, it’s not ok. First off there is the fact it is still an unreleased crime scene. Second, these people are handling real evidence and possibly even invalidating its use in court because of the chain being broken on it. Then there is the live-on-cable doxxing of at least one person that happened. There is no part of this that is ok.
And then remember that landlord?
CNN reporters outside San Bernardino killers' home says landlord was escorted away by law enforcement, put into unmarked vehicle
— Jon Passantino (@passantino) December 4, 2015
MSNBC later said it regretted showing images of personal documentation and photos on their live news broadcast.
Here's MSNBC's statement: "We regret" showing live images of IDs and photographs pic.twitter.com/eoIsiAnURr
— John Koblin (@koblin) December 4, 2015
Watch a portion of the MSNBC broadcast below:
Featured image via Twitter
Ah America the definition of an ongoing circus.
Pagan jim
More proof the FBI has become inept under Obama.
A spokesperson from the FBI said they had finished with the apartment. The owner gave permission for the reporters to enter the property.