Lauren MacGray
September
16, 2013
Journalism
F Period
Jahar’s
World
The Rolling Stone
Controversy
Terrorism within the United States has been a major
threat to millions of people for a long period of time. The most recent
terrorist attack involved bombing one of the greatest cities in the United
States and caused many people to suffer from hysteria and panic. The article, Jahar’s World, written by Janet Reitman
described Jahar’s life and how it had taken a turn for the worst. The Rolling
Stone’s magazine cover portrayed an image of Dzhokar Tsarnaev and made it out
to seem like he was this innocent man who had played the role as a victim in
this attack. This cover and article of the magazine illustrating Dzhokar
Tsarnaev as an innocent victim was a major controversial topic that left an
abundance of people very unhappy.
This jaw-dropping Rolling Stone’s magazine cover
portrayed a picture of Jahar that he had taken himself on his own computer. Not
only did they put this picture as the cover, but it happened to be a picture
that made him look innocent because of the good quality and promising captions.
“How a popular, promising student was failed by his family, fell into radical
Islam and became a monster.” Instead of the author of this article writing that
this attack had been his fault, he stated that it was basically all his family
that influenced him to do this. I strongly disagree with the fact that Jahar had
blatantly been manipulated by his family because he clearly made the decision
to do what he did, him and his brother, not anyone else. Also, usually making
the cover of the Rolling Stone’s magazine is a huge deal and something you
should be proud of because you did something great. In that case, is this in
some way giving Jahar credit for doing something so awful? In no way do I think
that Jahar should have been put on the cover of the Rolling Stone’s, and not
only that but it happened to be a good picture of him with positive captions
underneath. No one should ever even be given opportunity to question whether
this kid had done something so horrible, and I feel as if this magazine cover
made some people second guess it. My opinion on “The Bomber” is very strong in
the sense that this kid should have never done something so drastic yet made
the cover for a magazine that is usually given to people who achieve something
great.
Not only do I have a very strong opinion against this
magazine cover, but thousands of others do just as well. Carmen Rasmusen
Herbert mentions, “You know what’s even
more heartbreaking? How Rolling Stone can even think about turning an alleged
murderer into a rock star by plastering his “soulful brown eyes” on the front
page and claiming it’s all in the name of journalism…” (Decision to glorify
bomber is what’s truly ‘heartbreaking’). The fact that people would try to even
convince others that this guy is innocent is beyond everyone because only
people who are psychologically crazy would go through with a terrorist attack.
Even Jahar’s former wrestling coach was left speechless when he woke up at 4
a.m. on the morning of April 19th. “I felt like a bullet went
through my heart, To think that a kid we mentored and loved like a son could
have been responsible for all this death. It was beyond shocking. It was like
an alternative reality.” Even the people who had once loved Jahar do not
support his decision or his appearing on the cover of the magazine. Mayo Thomas
Menino, another man just as against this as everybody else, “wrote a letter of
protest to Rolling Stone and several retailers with Boston ties said they would
not sell the controversial issue”. Because this had caused such anger in
people, Boston magazine had posted their own photos of Mr. Tsarnaev being
arrested and covered in blood. A man named Sean Murphy had described this
controversial issue of “accusing the magazine of “glamorizing the face of
terror”. Many people throughout the United States have been negatively affected
by this because it almost seems like this one man can just blow up our city and
he gets credit and fame for it. “The Bomber” also known as Dzhokhar Tsarnaev,
has ruined thousands of people lives and has angered millions whether he
believes it or not. Whether this kid did it for the fame or not, he got it. As
if people weren’t upset with him enough, him making the cover of the Rolling
Stone’s magazine set people off the edge even more.
Terrorism is easily one of the worst things that a person
could do or even think about doing. The United States has always tried to be
very aware of this but this but now we are even ten times more careful. This
has always been something that we feared and it is something that we simply
will never be able to stop, people will do what they have to do. The Boston
Marathon bombings has been one of the worst things that has happened in the
world along with the 9/11 attacks. Dzhokhar Tsarnaev and his brother have
ruined millions of people’s lives with such a horrible act of violence. I very
strongly disagree with Jahar’s act of terrorism and his appearance on the
Rolling Stone’s cover, and so does the rest of the United States.
