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Media Frenzy Over Curtis Vance Trial

 Pam Baccam  Paul Ritter     3 months ago
The attack and murder of KATV anchor Anne Pressly made national news last year. Now, the trial of her alleged killer, Curtis Vance, is also garnering interest from around the country.
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All of the local TV stations are covering the trial as well as three Memphis stations. Also, over the last few days we've seen national media like ABC, Fox, CBS, and MSNBC.

Reporters say the fact Pressly was a reporter and the murder was so brutal, makes this case high-profile.

A line of photographers scramble outside of the courtroom, sometimes to capture only a few seconds of video.

When court is on break, reporters like Shaun Chaiyabhat from WREG in Memphis are dictating their stories back to the newsroom.

"This is such a huge case and I think it captured the minds of a lot of folks in the mid-South," says Chaiyabhat.

"I'm doing live shots at five, six, and ten for the station in Memphis. Of course, I'm covering the trial as well as putting stories together," says Janice Broach, a reporter with WMC-TV in Memphis.

Terry Hailey is not a reporter or connected to any of the families.  He just wants to sit in the trial.

"The whole experience is interesting, it's not like television and not like movies. The courtroom procedures are more informal," says Hailey.

The first day, family and supporters outnumbered the media, now, it's the other way around.

"There are several rows of media taking notes," says Chaiyabhat.

Memphis stations are also covering the trial because Pressly interned at WMC, she attended Rhodes college, and her on-air career just made it bigger.

"She was on air and people knew who she was. It makes a difference if you have a lot of pictures of somebody who has been murdered," says Broach.

Reporters say the courtroom is not full, unlike some of the other trials they've covered. The security in the courtroom, though, is very tight.

Reporters can only leave during scheduled breaks, but if they do leave, they can't go back in.

 


   

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