Newhouse Faculty Offer Thoughts on Shooting of Florida News Crew

The shooting death of a broadcast news reporter and wounding of his photographer in Orlando, Florida, is gaining the attention of S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications faculty.

Dylan Lyons was one of three people shot to death by a gunman, including a young girl and her mother. A news photographer was also wounded in the attack. Lyons and photographer Jesse Walden, who was wounded, were reporting on another story when the shooting occurred.

“The Tully Center for Free Speech mourns the loss of Florida reporter Dylan Lyons and the wounding of his photographer Jesse Walden. Even in seemingly safe places, reporters encounter danger,” says Associate Professor Roy Gutterman, who serves as director of the Tully Center for Free Speech.  “We are inured to reports of journalists being harmed in war zones or hotspots around the world. It is troubling when this happens in our backyards. More details will emerge on this senseless killing but this is another example of the risks reporters face to gather the news.”

Immediately after the shooting, Newhouse faculty started exchanging emails and reaching out to former Newhouse students who work in the Orlando TV market. Several students work at competing stations and knew Lyons well.

“A small news world means this is going to touch all of us in one way or another,” says Associate Professor Keren Henderson, in the broadcast and digital journalism department.

Former students working there are still processing it all. “Our emotions will come in waves and be a mixture of many things at any given moment,” says Assistant Professor Keonte Coleman, in the broadcast and digital journalism department. “Traumatic stories will stick with you and it’s OK to talk about it and seek professional help.”

According to The International Press Institute, 66 journalists were killed worldwide in 2022, up from 45 in 2021.