Guest on Nancy Grace Show Commits Suicide
Talk show producers are relentless when trying to get guests with first-hand knowledge of a tragedy. They circle like wolves, cajoling and promising fair treatment.
That's not what Melissa Duckett got from Nancy Grace's show this week when she agreed to an on-air telephone interview with Nancy. She got cross-examined and practically accused of being responsible for her son's disappearance.
The interview was taped on September 7 and scheduled to air September 8. Hours before it aired, Ms. Duckett went to her grandparents' home, took a shotgun and killed herself.
Police have not named Ms. Duckett as a suspect in her son's disappearance, although she appears to be a person of interest to them (as are all parents in such cases.)
Duckett's family members disputed any suggestion that she hurt her son. They said that the strain of her son's disappearance pushed her to the brink, and the media sent her over the edge.
"Nancy Grace and the others, they just bashed her to the end," Duckett's grandfather Bill Eubank said Tuesday. "She wasn't one anyone ever would have thought of to do something like this. She and that baby just loved each other, couldn't get away from each other. She wouldn't hurt a bug."
The reaction from Grace's spokesperson:
Janine Iamunno, a spokeswoman for Grace, said in an e-mail that Duckett's death was "an extremely sad development," but that the program would continue covering the case.
There is blame to go around here, it's certainly not just Nancy. Guilt sells in America, ratings go sky-high when there's a tragedy like Jonbenet or any missing child with a parent that doesn't fit the public's conception about what an innocent parent would do in that situation. If the public didn't watch, ratings would go down and the shows would fade away.
Our sympathies are with the Duckett family tonight.
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