On Tuesday’s Newsroom program, CNN correspondent Carol Costello harkened back to the 1970 incident at Kent State University, where National Guardsmen shot rock-throwing protesters and bystanders, and made it a possible equivalent to the recent murder of Iranian student Neda. Costello pondered the effect of the Neda murder video on the Iranian protests, and flashed a famous photo from the 1970 shootings [audio clips from the report are available here].
Anchor Kyra Phillips introduced the overall theme of Costello’s report: “By now, you’ve probably heard about Neda, the young Iranian woman that was gunned down in Tehran. Well, in death, she’s become quite a symbol of countless Iranians demanding new elections. The question now: will the memory of Neda help make that happen?” After giving some details into the college student’s death, the correspondent described the international reaction to it: “It seems the whole world now knows Neda and aches for her- and why not? It watched her die.”
Costello subsequently played a clip of Iranian author Azar Nafisi’s reaction to the Neda death video. She then proposed her question about the impact of the video: “It’s difficult to say right now, though, if this image of Neda will change everything. We know that pictures sometimes do. Many believe this shot taken at Kent State of a student gunned down after a Vietnam War protest helped end the war, yet this video of a lone student standing up to Chinese tanks did not end communism in China.”
One might understand the overall point over the impact of the three images, but the Chinese “Tank Man” and Neda have more in common with each other, than the two have with the Kent State protesters, as the American protesters weren’t facing an oppressive regime (though some of the victims of the 1970 shootings were innocent bystanders, as Neda apparently was).
The CNN correspondent continued with more details on the life of the young Iranian woman, along giving more reactions to her murder: “Neda’s death has further galvanized women in Iran.” She concluded her report with a rhetorical question on the powerful video of Neda’s final moments: “Fleeting image or tipping point?”
The full transcript of the report, which began six minutes into the 2 pm Eastern hour of Tuesday’s Newsroom program:
KYRA PHILLIPS: Well, a brutal killing on the streets of Tehran reverberates around the world. By now, you’ve probably heard about Neda, the young Iranian woman that was gunned down in Tehran. Well, in death, she’s become quite a symbol of countless Iranians demanding new elections. The question now: will the memory of Neda help make that happen? Here’s CNN’s Carol Costello.
CAROL COSTELLO: Kyra, the more the world gets to know Neda, the more powerful her story becomes. We’ve talked with Neda’s fiance. He told us Neda was not political. She was on her way to a protest with her music teacher. They had car trouble. Both got out of the car, and while they were standing on the street, a single shot rang out, killing Neda- her death caught on a cell phone camera and sent around the world.
COSTELLO (voice-over): It seems the whole world now knows Neda and aches for her- and why not? It watched her die. On Facebook, a page dedicated to her memory, amid pictures of a woman who may be Neda in life. There were messages too, filled with outrage, like this one: ‘That was murder.’ And this: ‘Shame on the man who killed you.’
AZAR NAFISI, AUTHOR ‘READING LOLITA IN TEHRAN:’ It is unbearable.
COSTELLO: Azar Nafisi, who wrote ‘Reading Lolita in Tehran,’ says the way Neda died means there’s no turning back for Iran.
NAFISI: Neda being silenced is now becoming the voice of all those other Iranian women and men, who over the past 30 years, have been fighting for their freedoms.
COSTELLO: It’s difficult to say right now, though, if this image of Neda will change everything. We know that pictures sometimes do. Many believe this shot taken at Kent State of a student gunned down after a Vietnam War protest helped end the war, yet this video of a lone student standing up to Chinese tanks did not end communism in China.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This image- this video, because it’s so graphic, so powerful- and it really illustrates in a way that words can’t, and even still pictures can’t- the pain and suffering and the willingness to sacrifice and put her life on the line.
COSTELLO: Because, some say, Neda defines who is protesting- according to her fiance, she was a philosophy and music student- 26 years old, standing near her music teacher and modestly dressed. She did not act aggressively. In fact, her fiance told us she did not vote. But friends told the L.A. Times she was upset at the election process. Neda’s death has further galvanized women in Iran. One young woman calling into CNN from Iran shared this with us:
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This old woman said to the- the forces, ‘Didn’t you kill Neda?’ We are all Nedas today. We don’t let that happen again.
COSTELLO: Fleeting image or tipping point?
COSTELLO (on-camera): Neda’s fiance told us the military did tell Neda’s family they could not have a memorial service, so she was buried at a cemetery. The only people attending- her parents, her brother and her sister - Kyra?
PHILLIPS: Carol Costello, appreciate that.
—Matthew Balan is a news analyst at the Media Research Center.
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Good ol' Crying
June 23, 2009 - 18:40 ET by bigtimerGood ol' Crying Costello.....probably got a raise today from CNN.
I have despised this far-left whiner from day one.
There is no comparison to what is happening in Iran today to what happened at Kent State, and I really doubt Crying Carol is old enough to even had lived it.
Doubling down on stupid is not a particularly good idea. ~Andrew Breitbart
I am not easly
June 23, 2009 - 19:04 ET by general companyFreaked out, but this poor woman, and the way she watches the camera, touched me. I am so angry at our President and his apathy for this situation.
The parody of Kent State is a none starter. It was a tragic incident, what is happening in Iran is what facist do to their people. Ever wonder why Obama wants the Civilian Gaurd?
My Gov. thinks I am dangerous, so be careful
"Television is a freak show" Bernie Goldberg
Does Costello Care Nothing About Womens Rights
June 23, 2009 - 19:18 ET by allanfHow can Costello use a moral equivalence argument that lightens the burden on a regime which brutally represses women? Does feminism mean nothing to her? Did she take away nothing from her womens studies indoctrination classes.
Or is the feminist hatred of America as an unjust nation so great that they are willing to overlook the misogynistic nature of the Iranian regime?
Costello should be ashamed.
Re Civilian Guard
June 23, 2009 - 19:40 ET by slickwillie2001Yep, our nightmare is that the Bamster sees Iran's Basij as the model for his civilian corps. He might think of the Basiji simply as community organizers.
sw... Couldn't agree more
June 23, 2009 - 19:51 ET by bigtimersw...
Couldn't agree more with your thoughts.
I think he sees them exactly as the Basij are now...I don't think he 'might' see them that way.
People really need to read O's history...in depth, all his connections.
Doubling down on stupid is not a particularly good idea. ~Andrew Breitbart
Costello gets history wrong (of course)
June 23, 2009 - 19:28 ET by GalvanicThe photos of Kent State certainly shocked the American public, but they had no impact on ending the war. After the Tet Offensive and the election of Nixon, the Vietnamization policy had begun and the US was drawing down its presence in South Vietnam.
She's obviously reaching,
June 23, 2009 - 20:46 ET by balboaShe's obviously reaching, trying to make Neda more relatable to Americans, but, yeah, there's only one similarity, and that is that both people were protesting something.
Neda was not protesting
June 23, 2009 - 22:55 ET by stratmanNeda was not protesting according to all the reports I've read so far.
Do you have news to the contrary?
Oh I thought I read that she
June 24, 2009 - 09:33 ET by balboaOh I thought I read that she was protesting the election. I could be wrong.
It was inevitable that the comparison would be made...
June 23, 2009 - 20:50 ET by goldenthroat"Many believe this shot taken at Kent State of a student gunned down after a Vietnam War protest helped end the war, yet this video of a lone student standing up to Chinese tanks did not end communism in China."
One slight problem here, Costello - the KSU shootings came as the result of left wing radicals wanting to shut down the educational process in America for their own anti-war, left wing agenda. I was a student at the University of Akron just barely 20 miles from the KSU campus on that day and remember how administrators such as university president Dr. Norman P. Auburn caved in to the demands of the radicals at UA and shut down the school for almost a week. I felt I had been robbed of my rights to an education.
What happened at Kent did nothing but fan the flames of more rebellion and gave birth to a left-coast, bleeding-heart, radical press that reported only one side of the story. This beautiful girl in Iran was murdered because the government is refusing to allow democracy and freedom to take its course. Her death will remembered for that cause.
Yes, there were innocent victims in the shootings at Kent State. It was a tragedy and probably could have been prevented. But let's keep this in perspective - the rioters at KSU wanted nothing to do with the freedom of others and their actions didn't come close to ending the Vietnam War.
This just goes to show you how ignorant those in the MSM really are. Remember their motto: "Our minds are made up. Don't confuse us with the facts!"
"Inferior people should not be employed!" - Firesign Theatre
As Expected
June 23, 2009 - 21:02 ET by rammingspeedIt's typical that these indoctrinates of the hate-America educational system believe that the US was, in 1970, and is, in 2009, an oppressive state. It is sickening. These little s***pies are simply given prominent positions on news stations and everyone just shrugs when they talk stupid; when they horribly misrepresent history. And their misrepresentations are always against America.
obedience
June 23, 2009 - 21:15 ET by nadadhimmiObama and the mullahs both demand obedience. This Neda girl, in mullahs and probably obamas eyes, got exactly what she deserved. Obama could and should have supported the students from the get go. The lapdog media would have covered it and the mullocracy would have fallen. Imagine the change in world geo and petro-politics if there was no Hamas, no Hezbollah, no taliban. The money to the terrorists and N Korea would dry up. Oil supply would climb and prices fall. Economies recover and soar. The change would be tremendous. Instead, Mr. hopey changey supported the Islamic terrorists like the good little , obedient, dhimmi he is. He just missed the chance of a lifetime to "change the world", but protected his personal power at the cost of Neda's life, and the lives of thousands not yet, but surely to be, murdered. This is Obama's "killing fields".
Obama is most assuredly a
June 23, 2009 - 21:17 ET by nadadhimmiObama is most assuredly a cowardly, murderous little bastard.
nad... This is exactly
June 23, 2009 - 21:21 ET by bigtimernad...
This is exactly what I fear and pray does not happen....thousands more done away with in Iran....as the msm ignore it for the most part.
Doubling down on stupid is not a particularly good idea. ~Andrew Breitbart
I think the Great and
June 24, 2009 - 06:23 ET by Ruths husband BenI think the Great and Mighty O is going to get tough with Iran. I understand that the first step is "No sparklers for Iranian Diplomats at American 4th of July celebrations." If they don't come around and quit killing their citizens, he is going to order "No Iced Tea either."
"Who are you going to believe, me or all that lying data?!"
-Al Gore
Most hilariously delusional
June 24, 2009 - 06:45 ET by CacciatoMost hilariously delusional post ever to appear on Newsbusters.
And that's saying a lot. Congratulations.
Ahmadinejad won. He has the support of the people. The protests, while inspirational and indicative of the beginning of a long term shift towards a more free society in Iran, are, in the end, not even close to formenting a revolution.
The protestors are in the minority. It's a sad and scary state of affairs but Iran is not even close to change.
Knowing this, what exactly would Obama have accomplished by supporting the students?
To claim that Obama is supporting terrorists and is happy to see Neda dead is insane. Your sentiment is on par with that of the 9/11 Truthers.
It's amazing how the conspiracy theories swirl now that Bush is out of office.
"Most hilariously
June 24, 2009 - 15:26 ET by pahuber"Most hilariously delusional post ever to appear on Newsbusters."
Really, cracc?, really?
I take it you have never read most of your own posts then.
'nuff said.
What a jerk. Incidents
June 24, 2009 - 04:07 ET by RR GOPWhat a jerk.
Incidents like Kent State were rare. If the 'fascists' wanted to have open season on hippies, there were many, many opportunities particularly during the violent protests in Chicago.
I have yet to hear anything satisfactory one way or the other. I believe some of the Guardsmen said they saw snipers on roof tops...well, then why didn't they shoot at them? Also, I know of no accusations whatsoever that the protesters were rushing them or the like.
Still, I am surprised that their weapons were locked and loaded. They should not have been loaded in the first place.
But I don't believe that the protest was completely peaceful and I do think that the Guardsmen probably did feel threatened or even more likely really pissed off, but grossly overreacted to the situation and were poorly led and disciplined and probably not properly trained for riot control.
Of course, I wasn't there but it seems to have been more of a case of people behaving badly on both sides culminating in a terrible, needless result.
Now Iran on the other, hand we have clearly seen these goons going around clubbing people who don't seem to be doing much of anything. I have heard no evidence that any of these shootings were in any way justified but were indeed encouraged by the State.
One of the 34% who thinks George W. Bush was a great President. One of the 61% who wants to bring back the stock and pillory (yep...approval for Congress now at 39%...do you believe that!?).
Template for the
June 24, 2009 - 05:55 ET by DontFeedTheTrollsTemplate for the 'news':
Cover an event that happened outside America, compare event to past event that happened in America in order to show America in the worst possible light. Twist the facts as needed.
D
Keep the ILLEGALS out, join NumbersUSA to send free faxes to your reps.
I hate to admit it, but ...
June 24, 2009 - 10:22 ET by EricTheRed... Costello does have a point. Whether she's right about Kent shootings helping end the war is open to debate. But there's some validity to comparing the Neda murder with this embarrassing American tragedy. I know, I know: What happened to Neda is the rule in Iran; in America, it was an exception. But both were instances of excessive use of force.
Just throwing it out there.
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Costello is full of sh*t, IMO
June 24, 2009 - 10:36 ET by SickofLibsKent State was caused by young, jittery, totally inexperienced National Guard troops panicking and overreacting.
Neda, and the others, were purposely murdered by paid thugs, many of them apparently not even Iranian.