Credit: By Provisions on Flickr. Some rights reserved.
Washington-based radio journalist Neal Augenstein, who works for WTOP, recently got into a bit of a Twitter spat over a photo posted by a television producer relating to an alleged armed hostage situation.
Basic journalism. Don't live tweet SWAT operations in ongoing standoff. Take photo/video now, tweet when it's over.
— Neal Augenstein (@AugensteinWTOP) February 21, 2015
Sharing a photo of the situation as it was ongoing was "dangerous to those involved," said Augenstein, and could reveal potentially risky location information.
.@Jackie_Pepper @MelissaMayTweet @Venice311 You showing SWAT positions tells person inside details he/she might not know.
— Neal Augenstein (@AugensteinWTOP) February 21, 2015
A few days later he wrote a post on what to do and what not to do when live-tweeting standoff situations on his blog, #iphonereporting.
Augenstein's advice for responsible reporting focuses on hostage situations but would also apply to any large-scale emergency incident where an element of foul play is suspected, such as bomb scares.
Bottom line?
"Consider the ramifications before hitting tweet."
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