UK : SE : Fade to black - former BBC camerman dies from heroin OD..

[General Lighting]

whats particularly ironic is BBC South were instrumental in exposing the levels of drug use in the rave scene during the 90s and getting a fair few venues closed down!

A former BBC cameraman died from a combination of excess alcohol, sleeping tablets and heroin, an inquest ruled.
Charlie Parker, 34, of Orchard Place, Southampton, was found dead in a flat in Monks Road, Winchester, on 4 April.
The deputy coroner for central Hampshire recorded a verdict of accidental death on Wednesday.
Friends, members of his family and former colleagues attended a funeral service for Mr Parker at Winchester Cathedral following his death.
Mr Parker was the son of former BBC South Today presenter Bruce Parker and worked as a freelance cameraman for the corporation.
One of his final assignments was filming the G20 summit in London earlier this year.
BBC NEWS | UK | England | Hampshire | Drink and drugs killed cameraman (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/hampshire/8284851.stm)

[olboy]

whats particularly ironic is BBC South were instrumental in exposing the levels of drug use in the rave scene during the 90s and getting a fair few venues closed down!

Shame. I don't think this particular fella had much say in BBC programming tho'. The fact that he had a habit should prove that not all users are the same and they can be useful members of the public. It's just a shame the only users that get into the news are the ones that have died... shitter!

[General Lighting]

Shame. I don't think this particular fella had much say in BBC programming tho'.

They do have much more editorial power if its in news, albeit more due to the downsizing of production teams. News camera ops these days certainly get a chance to choose their shot angles, positions and types of shot for a news item. I am a keen photographer and video maker myself and all this can make a very subtle but effective difference to how the eventual news item comes across.

In July 2007, I personally witnessed a camera operator from ITV Anglia film a rave being closed down, picking an embedded position behind Police lines (rather than a neutral one) and the resulting footage was unsurprisingly very "pro-police"...

As for the BBC guy, due to his young age (3 years my junior) I expect he might not have been in that particular job during the early 90s - he's more likely to have been out partying!

But if you work for the mainstream media in any role you are part of the machine and should be prepared to be judged as such.

The BBC as a whole has been responsible for a lot of inaccurate, scaremongering programs about drugs...

That said its good that he did this useful job rather than robbing old grannies to fund his habit, but it just shows he can't have been particularly happy in his work, yet this is the sort of job many people see as a dream career. My own current job is hardly a dream job (a normal IT management role albeit with a lot of autonomy and hands-on practical stuff) but since starting it I find it so much more fulfilling I've actually totally calmed down partying and getting high compared to just a few years ago..