As the Virginia Tech story broke last Monday, cable news, as always, took the lead with their normal oversaturated speculative coverage transferring the energy and resources normally reserved for non-story stories like the Anna Nicole Smith saga into covering a real story.

Some observers complained that the broadcast networks didn’t go with wall to wall coverage of the story. It is good that they did not last Monday afternoon, since all it does is create the chance for things to get on air that are speculative and gives talking heads a chance to talk – all of which could be seen on the cable news channels.

By the time the evening rolled around, reporters, both local, national and international had converged on Blacksburg like a pack of vultures and the networks did have some special reports. All the major local English language TV stations had their reporters on the ground there or on their way there. The exception was WPIX who used the Tribune Broadcasting national correspondents for all of their Virginia coverage. On the flip side, WABC had two reporters on scene at one point during the week.

WPIX had the right idea, since having local talent on scene really doesn’t add anything except for later promotional value touting how the station is willing to go anywhere to cover a story.

Nationally, all the major network newscasts were broadcasting live from the scene with CBS and NBC there Monday evening and all three network morning shows were broadcasting from Blacksburg. Even the BBC got into the act with Katty Kay anchoring the BBC World News from Virginia Tech on Tuesday.

However, the most controversial decision of the coverage occurred after NBC received a package from the gunman, Cho Seung-Hui, that contained a rambling manifesto of text, photos and video. NBC, of course, decided to run the images Wednesday which caused several victims’ family members to cancel their appearances on NBC News programs. By the end of the week, after much uproar, all of the other stations and networks stopped broadcasting NBC’s scoop, even praising themselves for stopping, but this is of course after they made use of it.

Interestingly, only one major North American network, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, decided not to air Cho’s manifesto. On the CBC website, Tony Burman, Editor in Chief of CBC News, wrote the following:

At the CBC, we debated the issue throughout the evening and made the decision that we would not broadcast any video or audio of this bizarre collection. On CBC Television, Radio and CBC.ca, we would report the essence of what the killer was saying, but not do what he so clearly hoped all media would do. To decide otherwise - in our view -would be to risk copycat killings. Speaking personally, I have long admired NBC News and I am sure my admiration of their journalists will endure. But I think their handling of these tapes was a mistake.