Democracy Dies in Darkness

Even within the media, some question the amount of Gabby Petito coverage

‘Why not the same media attention when people of color go missing?’ MSNBC host Joy Reid asked

September 23, 2021 at 9:42 a.m. EDT
Journalists wait near the North Port, Fla., home of Gabby Petito's fiance on Sept. 20. (Octavio Jones/Getty Images)

How much media coverage should any one news story get? The perennial question is getting renewed debate across the nation’s newsrooms and on social media amid an avalanche of stories about the disappearance and death of Gabby Petito.

Local and national outlets have covered the ins and outs of the story with an intensity of focus not seen in many years, buoyed by the involvement of Internet sleuths who have dedicated themselves to the case.