Reporters in Annapolis Cover Shooting in Their Own Newsroom After Gunman Kills Colleagues

by Julia Conley, staff writer Common Dreams 06/29/2018

The attack at the newspaper’s office is the United States’ 195th mass shooting of 2018

This post may be updated.

Journalists at the Capital Gazette in Annapolis, Maryland reported on a shooting that took place in their office, immediately after the attack occurred on Thursday.

Phil Davis, a crime reporter at the Baltimore Sun-owned newspaper, tweeted about the shooting while waiting to be interviewed by the police.

Police reported at around 5:00pm that five people had been killed in the shooting, and several others had been injured. A white male suspect was reportedly in custody and being questioned by police. The gunman used a shotgun in the attack.

According to CNN and MassShootingTracker.org, the attack at the newspaper’s office was the 195th mass shooting recorded in the U.S. since the beginning of 2018.

In a statement, Kris Brown and Avery Gardiner of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence said, “Yet another day where parents won’t return home to their children, where more souls join the ledger of 96 people killed by gun violence every day in America. Yet another day where men and women who were simply trying to do their job were terrorized, hiding under desks in fear for their lives. We can’t allow this to go on any longer.”

About The Gazette, founded in 1727 as The Maryland Gazette, is one of the oldest newspapers in America. Its modern-day descendant, The Capital, was acquired by The Baltimore Sun Media Group in 2014. Previously, it was owned by the Capital Gazette Communications group, which published The Capital, Bowie Blade-News, Crofton-West County Gazette, and Capital Style Magazine.

The Gazette and their sister publications have a long history, having been composed and printed in numerous locations, all in the Annapolis area, for more than 270 years. The company has moved headquarters seven times, including from 3 Church Circle to 213 West St. in 1948, and then to 2000 Capital Drive in 1987.