7:31 p.m. ET, July 12, 2022
Texas newspaper explains decision to publish Uvalde surveillance footage
From CNN's Amir Vera
The Austin American-Statesman, the Texas newspaper who published the leaked surveillance footage inside Robb Elementary,
explained to readers why they, alongside their news partner KVUE-TV, decided to publish said video.
Our goal is to continue to bring to light what happened at Robb Elementary, which the families and friends of the Uvalde victims have long been asking for," wrote Manny Garcia, the newspaper's top editor.
Garcia is also listed as the ethics and standards editor for USA Today Network, which is part of the American-Statesman’s parent company, Gannett.
The release of the leaked footage comes more than month after 21 people — 19 children and two adults — were gunned down on May 24 in Uvalde, Texas.
Since then, frustration and outrage has boiled over as parents along with local, state and federal politicians have called out the lack of transparency in the investigation into the
bungled law enforcement response to the shooting.
Garcia wrote the decision to publish the video — which parents were supposed to view first on Sunday — came after "long and thoughtful discussions" between the leadership at the paper.
"We have to bear witness to history, and transparency and unrelenting reporting is a way to bring change," Garcia wrote.
The paper published two videos Tuesday. The first is
the initial four-minute video that shows the gunman entering the school, shooting into the classroom and police waiting outside the classroom and retreating as they hear gunfire.
The second video,
posted to the paper's YouTube channel, is an hour and 22 minutes of footage.
The paper edited out the screams of children as the gunman enters the classroom and blurred out a child's face who first saw the gunman and ran away once the shooting began. The paper chose to show the gunman's face, Garcia wrote.
"We chose, in this instance, to show his face to chisel away at any conspiracy that we are hiding something. This last point included much discussion among our senior leaders, our Managing Editor for Standards Michael McCarter, our lead reporter, Tony Plohetski, and his editor, Bob Gee," Garcia wrote.
The Texas House committee investigating the shooting announced it would publicly release the full video on Sunday after showing it to victims’ family members. A source close to the committee tells CNN that plan has not changed.