Media Coverage of The Virginia Tech Massacre - Impact in Entertainment

Impact in Entertainment

• Jay Leno led the April 16 show off by sending prayers and best wishes to everyone affected. He stated that his job was to end the day on a happy note, and be a little silly, and he was going to try to do that for everyone on that day.
• The massacre was mentioned three times in the April 17 episode of hit show American Idol: First, show host Ryan Seacrest expressed "thoughts and prayers" on behalf of the producers of the show and the network; contestant Chris Richardson from Chesapeake, Virginia dedicated his performance to the victims and their families; judge Simon Cowell noted "how difficult this week was for all of us." Cowell was caught rolling his eyes on camera as a contestant was expressing sympathy for Tech victims. At first, this was misinterpreted as his showing his disrespect. Cowell later clarified that he was discussing the contestant's performance with another judge. This was confirmed by an uncut re-broadcast of the moment on the following night.
• Another Fox show, Bones, postponed the showing of an episode that had been scheduled for April 18. Its storyline centered on a basketball player found dead on a college campus. No new date had been set for the airing of the episode.
• Also from Fox, The Simpsons episode "You Kent Always Say What You Want" was originally planned to be titled the "Kent State Massacre" but was changed in light of the incidents both in 2007 and in 1970.
• The April 25, 2007 broadcast of NBC's drama series Medium was prefaced by a viewer's discretion announcement delivered by the show's stars, Patricia Arquette and Jake Weber. This was due to a previous episode dealing with a hostage situation that involved three employees being shot to death.
• CBS pulled the Criminal Minds episode "Doubt" from the 2006–2007 line-up due to similarities in the plot and the massacre at Virginia Tech in April, 2007. The episode eventually aired September 26, 2007.
• ABC revised the story arc of a 17-episode soap opera One Life to Live in which the May sweeps was to be centered on a hostage crisis taking place at the fictitious Llanview High School.
• Mike and Mike in the Morning on ESPN Radio began their show on April 17 by offering condolences to the families of the victims and talking somberly about the tragedy.
• Jeff Foxworthy, while hosting the Country Music Awards, gave a brief dedication to the victims, saying "You'll always be in the heart of the Country Music community."