boston bombing paper

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Courtney Emert
Alexis Catanzarite
English 102
October 21, 2013
Famous for Murder
Adam Lanza, OJ Simpson, Amanda Berry, and most recently the Tsarnaev brothers, are
among some of the most well known convicted criminals over the past few decades. These
household names completely overshadow the names of the innocent victims whose lives were
taken in the arms of these monsters. Their names have been projected across just about every
form of media that exists. As social media continues to grow and become the main source for
information, subsequently the publicity of these reports spreads along with it. Magazines,
newspapers, twitter, and Facebook are all common threads for featuring the latest in worldly
news as well as the public’s general responses and opinions. These reports have come under fire
for unintentionally glamorizing the criminal culprits and discounting the stories of the victims.
As these offenders skyrocketed to media stardom, their faces displayed on virtually every
television news report and printed article, the helpless survivors are hidden from the spot light. In
this past year, Rolling Stone magazine has joined in on this trend. Their highly controversial
cover featuring one of the Boston marathon bombers provoked a country-wide media frenzy.
Public outbursts were met with the magazine’s staff attempts to justify their actions and further
explain what they believe led him to commit this crime. In today’s society, the media focuses
their attention on publicizing the criminal and making excuses for their actions as opposed to
reporting on the innocent victims.

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The Rolling Stone magazine has been known throughout the years for featuring the likes
of up and coming musical talents to iconic figures in the entertainment industry and everyone in
between. The July 2013 issue of Rolling Stone’s magazine defied this theory of what Rolling
Stone’s magazine is known for and featured Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, one of the “Boston bombers”.
His tousled hair paired with his smirk expression from a distance could fool anyone into thinking
he was a musician. However, the black, bolded letters “THE BOMBER” insinuated otherwise.
Under this striking title is a brief description of how his family and religion failed him and led
him to commit this crime. Tsarnaev’s story takes the center stage while stories featuring Jay-Z
and Willie Nelson take a sideline position on the cover. This issue has been the most
controversial issue that Rolling Stone has released since the cover featuring Charles Manson in
June 1970, labeling him as “the most dangerous man alive”. In comparison to Manson’s best
selling issue in the 70s, Tsarnaev’s issue sold 13,232 copies between July 19th and July 29th.
Looking beyond the shocking titles and glaring images is the controversy behind the reason this
image was chosen. This shock factor is what encourages people to pick up the magazine in the
first place. The controversy in turn brings in the sales. As the city of Boston along with the rest
of the country mourned the deaths of their loved ones and began the strenuous healing process,
Rolling Stone published a magazine featuring the person who was the cause of their heartache. A
picture of the victims and the survivors was overlooked as a suitable way to pay homage to
everyone who was affected by the brutal attack. One would think that this image would provoke
positive reactions from the subscribers and bring in more sales however that is not the case. The
story about the corrupt perpetrator and the dark cloud that surrounds him seemed of more
importance to the publishers. The media refuses to acknowledge the existence of malevolence in
what they publish by providing excuses.

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Whether the weight is placed on blaming the criminal’s religion, family cultural
background, financial status, or social negligence, there is always a finger being pointed
everywhere but the target. In an article titled, “Evil can’t be explained in a cover line” the author
further verifies this point she says, “Debt, matrimonial discord, moving to a new country—these
experiences don’t typically trigger mass murders.” There is more to their story than simply what
is seen on the surface. The point of this cover was to prove that. Rolling Stone was attempting to
show the public how an average teenager living in America can self-destruct. They say that his
age makes him relatable to their readers, but what isn’t relatable is the thoughts behind his
actions. An average American teenager does not seek to kill millions of people as an act of
rebellion. The way that they try to use his youthful appearance and carefree persona to entice the
reader is completely misleading of the underlying message. He has committed a heinous crime
and he is receiving star treatment for it. Everyone experiences difficult times in life, but these
struggles are not valid justifications for physically attacking thousands of innocent people.
Teenagers are at a vulnerable age and seeing how someone of a similar age can gain mass
amounts of attention and be featured on one of their favorite magazines is a dangerous idea to
promote. Also, the way that Rolling Stone chose to point fingers at every outside source that
could have provoked him was their way of defending their own decision to put him on the cover.
The public’s disapproval of this approach further ignited the controversy.
Today’s society responds to media publications of criminals with anger and heartache for
the victims and their families. In this case, Rolling Stone released a statement following the
outburst of publicity they received to clarify why they chose the cover photo that they did. The
editors decided to stay firm in their decision and responded to the public by saying how they
have compassion for the victims and their families. They continued their statement and said,

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"The cover story we are publishing this week falls within the traditions of journalism and
Rolling Stone's long-standing commitment to serious and thoughtful coverage of the most
important political and cultural issues of our day.” This statement further enraged much of
the public, especially the Mayor of Boston, Thomas Menino, who wrote to Jann Wenner, an
editor for Rolling Stone advising the magazine to come out with a story that highlights the lives
of the courageous survivors as well as everyone who made their survival possible. He followed
up by saying, “The survivors of the Boston attacks deserve Rolling Stone cover stories, though I
no longer feel that Rolling Stone deserves them.” This coveted cover has been desired by
millions of people all over the world since its debut in 1967. Mayor Menino continues his
argument by saying that this cover “rewards a terrorist with celebrity treatment”. The Boston
mayor’s point for speaking out was to represent the families who were deeply affected by this
horrific tragedy. It is as if they are at a complete loss.
A cover of a renowned magazine for the doctors who nursed the survivors back to help,
volunteers who nurtured the families who needed help coping with the sudden loss of their loved
ones, and the fearless police staff who sacrificed their own safety to catch Dzhokhar would have
been a respectful homage to the families of the victims. Jen Regan decided to speak out against
the cover photo in support of her fiancé Marc Fucarlle who was still hospitalized three months
following the horrific act claims that the cover is “disgusting” and that it “sensationalizes Marc’s
pain as well as all the other victims and survivors.” Jen felt completely insulted by the image but
remained confident in stating that the people of Boston “will continue to rise above this
meaningless story and keep the focus where is belongs on the victims, survivors and their
families who face a lifetime of challenges.” Her reaction was not an uncommon reaction. It
appeals to those in similar situations as well as third party subscribers. What she had to

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experience with her fiancé was only the beginning in his lifelong battle for recovery in all
aspects. For her to have to walk by a newsstand and see a relaxed image splashed across the front
page of many popular publication of the culprit behind her future husband’s pain and agony is in
itself a crime. This scenario is exactly why there is a growing gap in the connection between the
media and society. The media has an idea of what they think the people should see and read
about, however, there is a fine line on what is considered morally appropriate.
The opportunity to grace the cover of a magazine whether it is Rolling Stone, People, or a
local 20-page publication is considered an honor for most people. A picture promoting an
achievement, a talent, an inspirational story, the list is endless. For young artists having their
picture displayed on the cover of Rolling Stone is the culmination of all of their perseverance and
hard work. The way that these media outlets utilize controversial topics and people in the same
way that they portray celebrities is a highly debated concept. Often times the media overlooks
the idea that the criminals are finally getting the attention that they have desired. They are
feeding this unworthy cause for these offenders to feel a sense of pride in their actions because
they are receiving a vast amount of publicity for it. Who wouldn’t want to appear on TV, in a
magazine article, or on the front page of the New York Times? Most people would jump at any
and all of those opportunities along with the rush to feel noticed and admired. So why does the
media give these precious opportunities to the people who commit shocking and horrific acts?
Why do they deserve it more than a young child who can sing as well as Whitney Houston or a
father who completed a marathon with a prosthetic leg? A Chinese man who was convicted of
stabbing 23 children supports the claim that the media gives attention to those that commit
horrendous crimes by saying, “I learned from the media two years ago that killing children
would get me on TV.” This is a prime example of how the media directly affects society, not

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only in the way information is portrayed but how society chooses to act as a direct reflection of
how they are feeling.

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Works Cited
Abel, David, and Martin Finucane. "Dzokhar Tsarnaev, Boston Terror Bomb Suspect,
Featured on Cover of Rolling Stone; Elected Officials Criticize Decision." Boston.com.
The New York Times, 17 July 2013. Web. 15 Oct. 2013.
Hatic, Dana. "Adweek: Rolling Stone Sales High for 'The Bomber' Issue."
Www.boston.com. N.p., 1 Aug. 2013. Web. 15 Oct. 2013.
N.d. Photograph. Www.rollingstone.com. Rolling Stone, 16 July 2013. Web. 6
Oct. 2013.
Phillips, Jack. "Chinese Man Who Stabbed 23 Kids 'Affected' by Doomsday
Rumors." The Epoch Times. The Epoch Times, 27 Dec. 2013. Web. 9 Oct. 2013.
Shermer, Michael. "The Sandy Hook Effect." Academic Search Complete. EBSCO,
2012. Web. 12 Oct. 2013.
<http://ehis.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?sid=f5f5de6e5fa6-4723-9a89-
07b926720aaf%40sessionmgr115&vid=1&hid=115&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3Qtb
Gl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=a9h&AN=86695677>.
"Statements Issued in Response to Cover Featuring Bombing Suspect - Boston News,
Weather, Sports | FOX 25 | MyFoxBoston." Statements Issued in Response to Cover
Featuring Bombing Suspect - Boston News, Weather, Sports | FOX 25 | MyFoxBoston.
Fox Television Stations, 17 July 2013. Web. 16 Oct. 2013.
Teitel, Emma. "Evil Can't Be Explained in a Cover Line." Editorial. Maclean's
12 Aug. 2013: 1. EBSCOhost. Web. 1 Oct. 2013.
<http://ehis.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?sid=f6aa83e8-a8fc-465a-a4fe-

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700031044e6c%40sessionmgr4&vid=1&hid=2&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2Z
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