A student at Butler High School in Matthews, North Carolina, shot and killed one of his fellow classmates with a firearm Oct. 29.
This shooting brought the total number of at-school gun discharges in 2018 to 75, moving the total to 10 more than in 2017, according to Everytown for Gun Safety, an organization dedicated to reducing gun violence in the United States. Due to the increase, some are discussing whether media outlets influence potential school shooters.
Joe Hayden, University of Memphis journalism professor, said there is no way to prove the media contributes to acts of violence.
“I don’t think they encourage them,” Hayden said. “It is almost impossible to prove a direct connection. It’s more of a mental health issue than an access to guns issue.”
Hayden said he thinks media sensationalizes the shootings but doesn’t think it directly causes people to plan a school shooting.
“I don’t think any mainstream media organization is causing there to be more shootings,” Hayden said. “But they may change how we feel about what we can do about it.”
Hayden said he thinks Fox News is notorious for worsening the situation at hand.
“If you’re focusing on all the wrong things, that’s going to make them hate other people,” Hayden said. “You’re an irresponsible journalist. It’s divisive, and it’s peddling hatred and contributing to an already dangerous climate.”
Some pro-gun advocates are suggesting arming teachers or placing armed guards on school campuses.
Hayden said even with the most well-trained professionals, like the U.S. military and local police forces, arming teachers would be a recipe for disaster in a school shooting situation.
“The answer isn’t to take away all guns,” Hayden said. “But putting more guns out into the public, that is already proven that does not work.”
Hayden said even Republicans and National Rifle Association (NRA) members are wanting to implement measures to prevent guns from getting into the wrong hands, but many politicians are still against gun control legislation.
“There is overwhelming public support to make it tougher to get guns, including the NRA and Republicans,” Hayden said. “Unfortunately, we’ve got people in Congress that don’t want anything to do with sensible gun measures. Until then, there won’t be change.”
Craig Stewart, a U of M communications professor, said arming teachers would cause more chaos and problems for law enforcement.
“Personally, I don’t think arming teachers is a good idea,” Stewart said. “More guns aren’t helpful. When you look at school shooting situations, there is no evidence to support that being armed would help.”
Stewart also said there are too many guns readily available in the country.
“I would love to see tighter gun control laws,” Stewart said. “That is ultimately the root of the problem. Other countries that have gun control laws don’t see these types of events.”
According to Everytown, an estimated 3 million children are exposed to school shootings yearly, and those who are exposed are more likely to abuse drugs, suffer from depression and engage in criminal activity.
