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‘Shame On You!’: Whoopi Goldberg Rages At Outlet For Publicly Releasing Footage Of Uvalde Shooting

[Screenshot/Rumble/The View]

Nicole Silverio Media Reporter
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“The View” co-host Whoopi Goldberg raged at the Austin American-Statesman newspaper Wednesday for releasing 77-minutes of surveillance footage of the shooting inside Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas.

The newspaper released footage that shed light on the police response to the shooting that killed 19 children and two teachers. The video showed the shooter, Salvador Ramos, entering the building and opening fire in one of the classrooms, and later showed heavily armed authorities waiting in the hallway.

“Many parents of victims are outraged this was released, but the paper is defending their decision. I find it indefensible,” Goldberg said. “I’m sorry, you forgot that attached to all those sounds are people’s children. And you didn’t have to do this. They were going to see this video on Sunday, you did not have to release this and leak it. I think it’s appalling and you should be ashamed of yourselves for doing that. For being thoughtless about the parents who have to relive this every day because it’s on television.”

“I don’t know if you guys over at that newspaper have kids, but shame on you. I know it doesn’t mean anything coming from me, but shame on you,” she continued.

Co-host Sunny Hostin said while the parents should have been notified first, there has to be a balance between freedom of the press and privacy. She said the video proves that the police were “cowards” in the situation and that footage can debunk a “police narrative.”

“Now we know what really happened because of those cameras out there, and as a former prosecutor, it’s such a great investigative tool,” Hostin said.

“Take the sound out,” Goldberg interjected. “They didn’t need to leave the gunshots in. What the hell!”

“It’s so important … videos in my view lead to just results, increased training, awareness. It can really change the public narrative,” Hostin continued. (RELATED: DOJ Investigates Uvalde Police Response)

Guest co-host Juju Chang said videos should be limited to an extent to respect the victims’ families. Guest co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin added that while serving in the Department of Defense, the next of kin was always notified before sensitive news or footage was released to the public.

“I think this outlet had an obligation to make every attempt to reach the families to say they were publishing it sooner. But I do think that justice does comes from seeing these things,” she said.

Goldberg argued that the footage involved real children who had been massacred, and therefore should not have been leaked without the parents’ knowledge. She then argued they should have taken the sound of the gunshots out as well as the cries of the children.

“These are real people,” she said. “These are real children that died, and I understand everything you’re saying, but you should’ve taken the sound out. You can still hear the shooting.”

The Austin American-Statesman explained in an opinion column that the video helps to “bring to light what happened at Robb Elementary, which the families and friends of the Uvalde victims have long been asking for,” and argued they must combat “heroic-sounding narratives proven to be false.”

“We have to bear witness to history, and transparency and unrelenting reporting is a way to bring change,” the outlet said.