Moving On.

The past few days have reminded me about what it is we do as a job. Not just me as a cameraman, but the media in general. The news media in particular. I have recently been filming news stories about a variety of things, but a few have stuck in my mind simply because i arrived at the scene of the story to be told, filmed it, sent it back to the studios, and had the story broadcast. So what's the problem?

well, it's not a problem as such, but i get to thinking about the story that we leave behind. For example, this week i have filmed a suicide scene and a story about a serial sex attacker preying on teenage girls. Completely unrelated and in different areas of the country, but once i have filmed, the package has been edited and the story broadcast to the audience, i feel, what then?

In just these two incidents alone i wonder how many lives have been destroyed, families affected, and lives changed beyond the recognition of the person living it. I know that each story i film goes way beyond the person relating their experience to us, the news media. Family, friends and others are also touched and changed by what has happened to the subject of our story, and the aftermath of what has befallen them.

As a cameraman though, i know i must film my news story and move on. I have been doing this now since 1997, and the tragic stories i have covered mount up behind me, mostly without a further thought. But today, i will think about those i have filmed, the tragic stories i have covered in my work, and the people left behind to get on with life once the media has moved on, as it must, to other, newer stories.