Media Hypocrisy at Its Best- Chapel Hill Shooting

As the world struggles to come to terms with the latest heinous killing of three Muslim students in Chapel Hill, USA, one thing that has come out clearly is the level of media hypocrisy and bias.

After the shooting incident in Charlie Hebdo, where at least 11 people died, both local and international media houses were quick to condemn the act, terming it as the worst terrorist attack. Reports indicate that the attack was motivated by a satirical cartoon of Prophet Mohammed published by the weekly newspaper.

Ironically, the same media has played down the incident in Chapel Hill, with the police arguing that it could have been as a result of an “ongoing neighbor dispute over parking”. Conflicting reports have however revealed that Mr. Craig Stephen Hicks, the suspected killer, has in the past publicly declared himself an atheist and according to one of the victim’s dad, Mr. Hicks was having problems with the three victims.

While most facts about this shooting point to a possible execution motivated by religious hatred, the media has not reported the incident with the same amount of zeal as it did in the case of Charlie Hebdo - a clear indication of bias and subjectivity.