Looking for live breaking news coverage 0f 4-20-99

Hello everybody, I'm new here and stumbled upon this forum during one of my regular exhaustive searches for Columbine resources. I've been fascinated by this case since watching it live when I was 20 years old. I thought that my knowledge and familiarity of the events was fairly comprehensive until I started reading the various topics here. You guys really know your stuff and I'm looking forward to delving deeper into what you've uncovered.

In that spirit, I thought that maybe I could try asking for help in finding something kind of specific. When I woke up on 4-20-99 to see the events of Columbine unfolding, I immediately grabbed a tape and started recording the news. I let it go all the way until the tape ran out and, knowing me, probably threw a second one in after the first. It has been a years-long source of deep frustration that I've been unable to locate those tapes again. I don't know if they were lost, I don't know if they were accidentally recorded over, I just know that I haven't been able to find them again.

Because of this, my holy grail of Columbine documentation has always been original, live, breaking news footage of the events as they happened. Since I can't find my own I've tried to replace it with as much as I can find. The problem is that most of what's out there consists of blips and samples: a three minute video here, a trio of ten minute clips there. What I once had was several straight hours of confusion, questions, rumors and reporting. Not isolated snippets but the gradual unfolding and piecing together of what was going on. For years I've been desperate to have it again. Once we learn the who, what and whys of something like this I find it endlessly fascinating to go back and revisit that specific little window between "before" and "after".

To finally end my ramble (sorry, I'm not the kind to just show up and ask for help without at least some background), I was wondering if anyone has anything like what I'm describing. Long clips - as long as possible - of original news coverage of the event as it was actually happening. The best I've been able to find is a 6+ plus hour clip of the morning of 4-21, which is fantastic, as well as 1:45 or so of raw helicopter footage, which is also great. But long (45 minutes or more) stretches of talking heads narrating the confusion of 4-20 as it happened continue to elude me. Can anyone help?

I would love this too, I remember watching it live but as far as taping it, I don't think I did, I did tape a lot of interviews and I am not sure how much I still have, it is probably in my parents attic if I didn't tape over it. I do know if I still have the tapes I DO have Eric playing soccer because when I was 17 that was the most component of um.. my research....

I will be back east for the Christmas holidays and I am sure I can go up to the attic and see if I have my old VHS tapes.

Also, welcome!

At your leisure, of course. I'd be thrilled if you happened to have anything like what I described. It's a shame (albeit a minor one compared to everything else that was wrong with the massacre) that Columbine took place just before the time when everyone was recording everything. Granted, there ARE a lot clips out there, but lengthy uninterrupted coverage seems to be extremely rare. It makes me wonder why there are so many short clips at all. Were people recording soap operas and just flipping over to the news during commercial breaks or something?

Oh and thank you for the welcome! I wish I'd found this place a long time ago.

I used to watch Guiding Light and One Life to Live in HS so I am sure I had SOMETHING recorded but that was probably taped over in lieu of interviews.

My parents didn't like my interest in the case so I had to be sneaky.

Why didn't they approve of your interest? Too morbid?

miketheratguy wrote:

Why didn't they approve of your interest? Too morbid?

They never really told me. I think because they Didn’t really like anything online. They didn’t trust anyone online and I was heavily involved in a lot of communities. Plus I was very angry and bullied child so they were probably worried being interested in something mobid would be bad

Also my slight crush on Eric Harris might have been a factor

Hmm. Sounds like they didn't want you kicking a hornet's nest, lol. Sorry that you were bullied, glad that you came through it though.

miketheratguy wrote:

Hmm. Sounds like they didn't want you kicking a hornet's nest, lol. Sorry that you were bullied, glad that you came through it though.

That’s probably it.

And I know the initial reports were that they were outcast and bullied really bad and I know that’s not true completely I do know they were bullied but even though I now know that that wasn’t the main reason I still kind of always have that empathy for them and of everyone that died

I did send a card to Rachel’s family I do remember that. And I did talk to Sue

I too am of the belief that unhinged personalities due to mental illness, not bullying, were the primary cause (even if some mistreatment did happen at the school). All the same, bullying is obviously a very real thing that causes pain for a lot of people.

You sent a card to Rachel's family? That was really good of you. How long ago was that? And you also spoke to Sue Klebold? What did she say?

miketheratguy wrote:

I too am of the belief that unhinged personalities due to mental illness, not bullying, were the primary cause (even if some mistreatment did happen at the school). All the same, bullying is obviously a very real thing that causes pain for a lot of people.

You sent a card to Rachel's family? That was really good of you. How long ago was that? And you also spoke to Sue Klebold? What did she say?

I definitely feel similarly. I sent Rachel’s family a card probably a month after it happened

Spoke to Sue that summer and I just called to let her know that I had empathy for her and her family and we talked for a little while

That was good of you. You seem like a pretty decent person.

miketheratguy wrote:

That was good of you. You seem like a pretty decent person.

Thank you! I make a valid effort

Screamingophelia wrote:

miketheratguy wrote:

That was good of you. You seem like a pretty decent person.

Thank you! I make a valid effort

You're welcome! I'm a fan of decent-hearted people since I don't seem to encounter them very often.

Meanwhile, this discussion about VHS tapes has launched me on another search through my own. I swear I've tried going through them at least five times over the years but there are more than 100 of them so I always give up partway through. It wasn't like me to not put a huge "COLUMBINE" sticker on the tape and store it somewhere particularly safe but I apparently never did. So many of these videos are unmarked or marked with old, obsolete labels that I still feel hope that I might have the motherlode of TV coverage somewhere.