Reporting about Randall Waggoner's death relatively modest -- for now

Wednesday's blog "Does Denver Media Care More When White People are Shot" focused on Randall Waggoner, who wound up shutting down Mineral Avenue in Littleton for hours after a murder/suicide attempt that failed on the former count (his estranged wife, Christina, remains alive, albeit in critical condition) but ultimately succeeded...

By Michael Roberts

August 6, 2009

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Wednesday's blog "Does Denver Media Care More When White People are Shot" focused on Randall Waggoner, who wound up shutting down Mineral Avenue in Littleton for hours after a murder/suicide attempt that failed on the former count (his estranged wife, Christina, remains alive, albeit in critical condition) but ultimately succeeded in terms of the latter (his death was announced yesterday evening). Reportage about Randall's demise has been scaled back in comparison with coverage of the initial incident, with most news agencies sticking to significant information about his violent past, including a 2001 domestic-violence complaint and a second-degree-assault-charge that would have brought him into court next week.

Now, however, Christina will be seen as a major "get" by local media outlets. If she recovers, expect many of them to seek out and feature her story, which is undeniably horrific. Of course, that's likely the case, too, for many relatives of the 23 homicide victims in Denver between January 1 and July 4, most of them African-American or Hispanic -- yet their tales have largely gone untold to date. The reasons can be debated, but the facts are inescapable.

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Michael Roberts began his career with Westword in 1990 as music editor. In 1999, he took on a new role, full-time media reporter, as author of a column called The Message. In 2008, he became the lead writer for Westword's news blog, The Latest Word, a position he held until January 2023. Michael continues to freelance for Westword, covering everything from business to sports and the media; he also contributes to Jazziz, a national music magazine. He holds a bachelor's degree from what is now Colorado Mesa University and master's degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles, and Northwestern University.

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