With The Times

By Haley Alphonse

Charles, a suburban resident, is feeling increasingly anxious. Carol, seven months pregnant, faces the harsh realities of a race conflict that has erupted, fueled by media coverage across Boston. The story revolves around an innocent white couple, victimized by a black perpetrator, later identified by authorities and the media as William “Willie” Bennett. As the narrative unfolds, the growing disparity between fact and perception becomes evident, further deepening racial polarization and intensifying divisions across both communities.

On October 23, 1989, Charles “Chuck” Stewart called 911, reporting that he and his wife, Carol Stuart, had fallen victim to a violent attack. Chuck had been shot in the side, while Carol suffered a gunshot wound to the head. She was rushed to Brigham & Women’s Hospital but was pronounced dead on October 24 at 2:50 a.m. Their unborn child, Christopher Stuart, was delivered prematurely at 31 weeks, suffering from oxygen deprivation and trauma. The infant passed away 17 days later. Both deaths were ruled homicides.

Chuck initially identified a black, unknown gunman as the perpetrator. However, law enforcement and the media later revealed that Chuck took his own life, believing to have done so in response to his role in the deaths of his wife and child.

To fully grasp the nature of the crime, it’s essential to understand the community of Mission Hill, as portrayed in The Boston Globe’s Nightmare in Mission Hill series. More specifically, podcast episode one, The Crime, which features personal accounts from residents like Christine Norwood, the neighborhood was once known for its sense of love and peace. However, by the early 1980s, the crack epidemic began to dismantle this “bit of sweetness.”

“It’s like being entered into a jungle, because it was so chaotic. […] We got drug dealers every other corner, stuff hidden inside trees, they got kids being mules,” said Don Juan, a longtime local resident of Mission Hill.

The Boston Globe, much like many other publications had one goal: to be the fastest publication to report all the facts. While they were quick, David Weber at the Boston Herald shocked Boston with a sensational headline, reading: “Gunman Invades car, shoots couple,” and a graphic picture to match. While journalists had their suspicions, one fact remained clear: violence and the crack epidemic were rising rapidly and people were terrified. 

As reported in podcast episode eight, Setting the Record Straight, Globe columnist, Mike Barnicle, contributed much to this rushed journalistic environment. While commenting on the “honest pride and hard work” of South Boston citizens, Barnicle also fueled the narrative of violence and drug-related crime in neighborhoods like Roxbury and Mission Hill. 

“Something has happened in this country recently, something that’s all mixed up with crack and cultural depravity with ignorance and indifference. Something bad, something truly evil. There are too many kids in too many neighborhoods who have absolutely no fear and no respect for anything or anyone. 

They would just as soon shoot you as look at you. They are not damaged by juveniles. They are raped, robbed, maimed and sometimes killed by young criminals, beasts who are growing up in a cave where there is no light, no hope, and very little future,” Barnacle said. 

Barnicle’s analysis of the black community and his use of language is meant to instill fear amongst his viewership. His sheer lack of empathy spreads the rhetoric that black youth are animalistic savages, rather than the victims of a widespread assumption that blackness equates to criminality.

Amid efforts by journalists like Barnicle to capitalize on the widespread fear of violence, black individuals and communities became the true victims of sensationalized narratives. This continued pattern of misleading reporting reflects a longstanding failure of journalistic integrity, as media coverage of the black community has historically been neglected by inaccuracy and bias.

A 2018 study by Dr. Travis L. Dixon, cited by Color of Change, found that news media are 1.32 times more likely to link black families to crime than white ones. This results in an 11% overrepresentation of blacks and a 39% underrepresentation of whites, despite blacks making up 26% of arrests compared to 77% of whites.

Boston’s neighborhoods were portrayed as being overrun by gangs, with members solely focused on wreaking havoc through violent crimes at alarming rates. In this narrative, the actions of a single black individual were often seen as a reflection of the entire community. Labeled as monsters, thugs, and animals, the black community faced intense scrutiny, with much of the criticism stemming from high-profile cases like Murder in Mission Hill.

Months before the case that blew up like a ticking bomb in Boston media, a similar incident shook the streets of New York. On April 20, 1989, five black teenagers were arrested and harshly sentenced for the alleged brutal assault of a white woman in Central Park. The case, known as the Central Park Five, garnered widespread attention and controversy.

Newspaper columnists also contributed to the narrative. In a piece for the New York Post, Pete Hamill described the teens as emerging “from a world of crack, welfare, guns, knives, indifference, and ignorance… a place devoid of fathers… where the goal is to smash, hurt, rob, stomp, and rape.” The enemies, Hamill argued, were the rich and white.

The media quickly branded her as “The Wolf Pack’s Prey,” and the case became known as “the crime of the century.” As the trial progressed, public figures, including Donald Trump, the current President of the United States, fueled the controversy by calling for the death penalty and portraying the police as crucial to controlling violent crime, despite their own corruption.

Ultimately, through nationwide media coverage, the country’s law enforcement and the criminal justice system have often been portrayed as protectors even though they have played a significant role in undermining community development. By reinforcing the narrative that associates black individuals with criminality, law enforcement and media coverage from outlets like The Boston Globe have long shaped societal perceptions. In a paradoxical manner, the media has acted as a puppet master, fueling divisions along lines of race—white versus black, suburb versus city, and innocent versus guilty.