You’d think being humiliated and violently dragged out of a seat that you paid for in front of a plane full of people (and eventually the world) would be bad enough, but several media outlets have decided to dig into the past of Dr. David Dao. Apparently the 69-year-old doctor, grandfather and father to five (four of whom are doctors), also deserves to have his name dragged through the mud. Yes, instead of focusing on the background of the people who assaulted Dr. Dao or the policies that allowed him to be treated like this in the first place, the Courier-Journal went full steam with an article about Dr. Dao’s prescription drug-related arrest in 2003. As if that has anything to do with the treatment he received by United Airlines and security personnel. Did they run background checks on the people who violently drug off Dr. Dao? No, they went right after the victim himself.
The reaction to the article has been swift and many are wondering, would a white 69-year-old grandfather and doctor be treated the same way by United and/or the ensuing media coverage? Some of the harshest criticism for the article comes from other reporters: