TMZ first news outlet to report Bryant death

No one wanted to believe it was true. When word began spreading on social media on Sunday that Kobe Bryant was killed in a helicopter crash, the initial reaction was what you would expect — shock and disbelief, a lot of, “This can’t be true.” That happens anytime a famous person dies, especially since Twitter has become an unofficial national place of mourning. You can’t believe it’s true because you don’t want it to be.

There was more to it, however. TMZ, the tabloid-style website that began as a gossipy rag, was the outlet breaking the news. To some, this offered a glimmer of hope. A lot of people tweeted that they wouldn’t believe it until they saw what they deemed more legitimate media reporting Bryant’s death.

Bryant’s death was a shock, but TMZ’s accurate reporting was not

That came soon enough. But while Bryant’s death was a jaw-dropping shock, TMZ getting it right was not.

Over the years, it has become a reliable source for celebrity deaths, thanks to a well-placed group of sources. (Though not always — in 2013 TMZ reported that rapper Lil Wayne was near death, though he later said that “I could’ve died” after a series of epileptic seizures.)

The news of Bryant’s death was reminiscent of Michael Jackson’s in 2009: a total shock, a complex past and, again, first reported — accurately — by TMZ, which also broke news of Garry Shandling’s death in 2016 first. There was some hesitation about that story, too.

But there were more complications in covering Bryant’s death. News spreads so much faster now than it did in 2009. Bryant wasn’t alone, obviously, on the helicopter. How many other people died? Initial reports said five. Later that was updated to nine.

And who were they?

That’s where things got sticky.

A terrible reminder that it’s better to be right than first

A reminder here that journalism is an exceptionally competitive business. Breaking stories is certainly one of the goals. And the heat of the moment is intense, the excitement of learning new information intoxicating. It’s one of the reasons people go into this business. But there is also an old saying that, in the world of instantaneous updates, bears repeating:

It’s better to be right than first. That’s something ABC’s Matt Guttman would do well to remember. During reporting on the network, at one point Guttman said, “Four of his children are believed to be on that helicopter with him.”

They weren’t, at least not all of them. Later it was confirmed that Bryant’s 13year-old daughter Gianna was killed.

WPLG, an ABC affiliate in Miami, tweeted, “#UPDATE Kobe Bryant’s 4 daughters reportedly among those killed in helicopter crash.” That tweet has since been deleted.

Later WPLG tweeted, “#UPDATE @ABC News now pulling back on report that Kobe Bryant’s daughters were on helicopter. Bryant confirmed dead.”

That’s no excuse. You have to try your best to get any story right. When it’s a story the whole world is watching, or at least a big chunk of it, you have to be really sure. Readers, viewers and listeners will remember who made a mistake a lot longer than they will who got it first, or second, or third.

‘We want to get it right’

Fox News anchor Arthel Neville seemed to have that in mind when TMZ broke the news about Gianna Bryant.

“There are many stories circulating right now and we want to be very careful about what we’re reporting because people are — and I want to say this to our viewers,” she said. “We take a lot of pride in getting the stories right. We are not racing to get the facts to you to be the first one on record. We want to get it right.

“And we also want you to understand that when these types of stories happen, the information is very fluid. We do our best to confirm all the details and report the information to you with accuracy. Right now there are so many stories floating around on social media, etc., so we will do our number one level best to only provide you with the facts we can confirm.”

Good for them. And good for Kavitha Davidson, a writer for the sports site the Athletic, who wouldn’t go down the road of speculation during an appearance on MSNBC.

‘I think we have to be really careful in what we report’

“It’s really hard to kind of wade through the array of rumor and details that you don’t know what’s true and what’s not,” Davidson said. “There’s a lot of things that are unsubstantiated out there. I think we have to be really careful in what we report.”

She offered an example.

“I would like to make it very clear, because this was something that was reported and spread — Rick Fox, a former Laker player, was not on the helicopter,” she said. “I think we’re all trying to wade through the details that are coming out.”

Ah, yes. Rumors swirled about Fox being one of the passengers on the helicopter.

He was not.

‘There are real families involved’

All the networks, and everyone else reporting the story, waited for much of the day for a news conference for updates on the crash. Media coverage was on the mind of Alex Villanueva, the Los Angeles County sheriff, when he stepped to the microphones — and declined to identify any victims.

“It would be extremely disrespectful to understand your loved one has perished and you learn about it from TMZ,” he said. “That is just wholly inappropriate, so we are not going to be going there. We are going to wait until the coroner does their job.”

He did not refute reports of Bryant and his daughter being among the victims, however.

Sunday night Maria Shriver tweeted, “To my colleagues in the media, please tread carefully. There are real families involved. Losing a loved one in a shocking, public way is brutal. Let’s remember that as we report this story.” Good advice.

Bryant and his daughter weren’t the only victims Sunday. There are victims every day, many of whom don’t get reported on. They all deserve our time and respect — and our accuracy. Sunday was an important reminder.