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An insider's guide through the web of myths, legitimate evidence, and contradictory media coverage surrounding Columbine. |
(Newspapers & Magazines)
This page will help you access much of the newspaper and magazine coverage of Columbine, and steer clear of the myths. It is divided into four sections:
- OVERVIEW of media archives
- BEST/WORST sources—a summary
- WARNING on all early stories (read this or you'll regret it!)
- LINKS to each paper or magazine's coverage, with brief analysis.
OVERVIEW OF MEDIA ARCHIVES
| Most of the important local and national papers and magazines have a special Columbine archive of some type. In most cases, they contain links to several highly-significant stories. A few, such as the Rocky Mountain News, offer a complete archive of their Columbine coverage. | ||
Related sites by Dave Cullen |
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BEST/WORST SOURCES
BEST: For the latest stories (and latest understanding of the case), go directly to Westword, no doubt about it. (Westword is Denver's alternative weekly.) They are a weekly, so the one thing you won't find is early stories with the play-by-play of anguish and grief. But reporter Alan Prendergast has bird-dogged this story better than anyone, uncovering boatloads of great information. He's got a good eye, and a quick mind-his analysis is first rate.
BEST EARLY COVERAGE: For early coverage, and for immediate reports on major events throughout the aftermath, the Rocky Mountain News is the clear favorite. They were about the only source getting most key issues correct in the early days. And then investigative reporter Dan Luzadder did a great job digging. For detailed daily news reporting on any specific event within the long, sordid Columbine tale, look to the Rocky.
WORST EARLY COVERAGE: On the early coverage, avoid the Denver Post like the plague. Immediately after the massacre on April 20, 1999, they get so many of the key points wrong. I have analyzed the coverage by most of the major media, and you can see day by day how the Post coverage is driving the major myths home. They were particularly relentless on the jocks myth and the Trench Coat Mafia. For coverage after the first several months, they generally have solid reporting, but I tend to find the Rocky more reliable.
WARNING ON ALL EARLY STORIES
Read this or you'll regret it
With all these sources, be forewarned that virtually every news organization got taken in by the myths, and much of the key information in everyone's early stories is wrong (including mine). Be aware that Columbine had nothing to do with jocks, Goths, or the Trench Coat Mafia. Certainly nothing to do with Marilyn Manson. Any Columbine reporter will tell you this now, but unfortunately, all our archives are full of misinformation. (For an intro or refresher on the myths, see my September 1999 Salon stories: Inside the Columbine High investigation: Everything you know about the Littleton killings is wrong, "Kill mankind." No one should survive (the writings of Eric Harris).)
LINKS & ANALYSIS
All of these sites provide links to selected major stories; some include a complete archive to stories for the first few years. Most also have a section linking to other Columbine resources.
They are listed in priority order, with most valuable first:
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WESTWORD
Your all-around best source. (See the best/worst section.)
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ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS
The Rocky has put together a really well-organized site, with lots of major information easily found on one page. It's mostly limited to their own work, but they did some great work. (Look especially at the excellent three-part "Inside The Investigation" series. They also have some external links to the sheriff's report, and portraits on each victim that was killed.
You'll find recent stories on top, and a big "Special Features" box below, with lots of links. Right between those sections, you can easily miss a link that says "Full archive." That takes you to every story they published the first several years--dozens a day in the early weeks. Unfortunately, they seem to have a gap between early 2006 and early 2007. You can go directly to the full archive here, but you will miss the special features section on that page.
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SALON.COM
I can't be objective, because I did nearly all their field reporting, though there is lots of excellent analysis by people outside Colorado. And I think you'll find my stories stand up well. (Unfortunately, this directory is missing a few key stories, but those are included in their archive of all my Salon stories.)
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USA TODAY
Includes major stories only-a blessing and a curse. It's far less complete, but it also weeds out the chaff and gives you the stories you're probably most interested in. They have two excellent reporters, and most of their work is excellent. But beware of the early stories, where they were heavily bought into the myths.
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WASHINGTON POST
The site says the list is limited to "key Post stories," but it looks very thorough through 1999, then stops cold.) After the RMN, the Post had the most accurate early coverage. And their lead reporter at the time, Tom Kenworthy (who has since moved to USA Today) was just outstanding in terms of reporting, writing and insight. He is THE best reporter and writer I have ever met in Denver.
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APBNEWS.COM
They are out of business, so it might be impossible to reach their work. But if you come across them on the web, they had a first-rate reporter here.
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DENVER POST
The Post has a much less thorough resource than the Rocky. It is broken into at least two parts, with April - June 1999 here, July 1999 - November 2000 here, and later stories nowhere that I could find. They used to have later stories gathered on one page, but they have changed the URLs many times, and I can't find the later stories now. If they change again and these links are broken, try a google search to find the special section. The link was valid in May 2007. The site includes a very limited set of links on the right side of the page.
Beware of the early stories (see the best/worst section above), but their reporting has been solid the past several years.
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Written and compiled by Dave Cullen. Copyright 2003-2007.
Columbine collage photos from the Rocky Mountain News.
Dave Cullen logo by Jimmy/Gnash. Columbine Guide logo by Dave Cullen.
This site was formerly called the Columbine Navigator and Almanac.
Contact: dave@davecullen.com
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