D.C. Stations Swarm Capitol Shooting

TV stations in Washington dropped regular syndicated fare Monday afternoon--others were already into the early evening local news--to cover a shooting at the U.S. Capitol visitors center.

Judge Judy on Fox’s WTTG Washington and Dr. Phil on CBS affiliate WUSA had to make way for live pictures of Capitol Hill and a press conference with Capitol Police.

The suspect was reportedly shot and injured and a bystander injured by shrapnel.

Details about the event were sketchy at press time, but with the nation on alert following a series of suicide bombings abroad, there was much talk about security.

WUSA aired some tweets from reporters at or near the scene, including an image and the tweet: "Investigators swarming this silver Dodge pickup in the Capitol Parking lot."

The station was also asking viewers to submit their accounts and images.

John Eggerton

Contributing editor John Eggerton has been an editor and/or writer on media regulation, legislation and policy for over four decades, including covering the FCC, FTC, Congress, the major media trade associations, and the federal courts. In addition to Multichannel News and Broadcasting + Cable, his work has appeared in Radio World, TV Technology, TV Fax, This Week in Consumer Electronics, Variety and the Encyclopedia Britannica.