This past weekend, a story getting attention (at least on Fox News) was about the “soldier denied burial at Arlington National Cemetery” because he was not on active duty at the time of his death. Staff Sergeant Thomas Florich of the Louisiana National Guard was killed along with 10 others in a helicopter crash during a training exercise off the coast of Florida.

The story carried the banner “a real dishonor.” Apparently, Arlington could provide a place for the deceased soldier if he was cremated, but his wife understandably wants to be able to bring her children to his grave. The piece ran several times through the weekend, with anchors responding with statements like “unbelievable” when the story ended.

This is certainly a family that deserves compassion and respect.  I hate to dampen that with a “however,” but there is one. From a journalistic viewpoint, the coverage of this story seemed to follow a template seen often in television news.  Somehow, contact is made with a news organization to reveal a tragic circumstance, often by a family member, an attorney, a media outlet close to the affected parties, or someone else close to the situation. The news organization sees an emotionally compelling story. 

This particular story, and others like it, seem to provide what I would call a “platform of compassion” or more severely, a “platform for outrage.”  What was never asked, in the taped interview with the father that I saw, or the comments by the anchors as it was repeated through the weekend, was whether Arlington National Cemetery was the only option—and what exactly are the procedures and policies for honoring our military, whether killed on duty or as veterans dying long after their active service.

In Illinois, where I live, we have a fairly recent addition to the system of national and state military cemeteries, the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery in Elwood.  The National Cemetery Administration maintains 131 national cemeteries in 39 states (and Puerto Rico) as well as 33 “soldier’s lots and monument sites.”  Not all are currently open (some are historic burial grounds from the Civil War and/or no longer have room for burials), some only allow cremation, but all are maintained to honor those who have served in the armed forces, many giving their lives while in uniform. 

In recent years, several people I have known who served (or were spouses of those who served) were accorded various types of honors on their death.  One Army veteran was buried locally, with an honor guard conducting the flag ceremony at the funeral and appearing at the graveside as well. A husband, who had served in the Navy, and his wife were both buried at Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery, following a protocol I had not been aware of:  the first to die is buried deepest, with room for the spouse’s casket on top of it later, both sharing a common gravestone (for which there is a mobile gravesite locator).

It is understandable that Arlington National Cemetery—the iconic American national cemetery—seems a desirable and appropriate place for someone killed while wearing the uniform. What Fox could have done in this case—and what news outlets could do in many other “compassion” stories—is respectfully but professionally dig into the story deeper to see if there are other questions to ask, other scenarios to suggest, another perspective to help the audience truly understand the situation...all of which would help to ensure true compassion toward the subjects of the story...and appropriate action when called for.

Addendum June 13, 2015:

This morning on Fox News, it was reported that Staff Sergeant Thomas Florich will be allowed burial in Arlington Cemetery. His father appeared and thanked all of those who had responded to the earlier story. While it sounded as if the decision recognized that the Naitonal Guard should be included with regular armed forces units, it was left unlcear whether this was an exception or a change in policy. No questions were asked or statements made about the fate of the ten others who died in the same training accident or the reactions of their families. Who is going to rell us "the rest of the story," as Paul Harvey used to do?