A Boston Marathon bombing survivor has revealed that she left a Boston television studio in tears before a taping of news program “Meet the Press.”
Dancer Adrianne Haslet-Davis lost her left foot in the bombing, and said on Friday that she had asked the news program not to mention the suspect’s name — but the show went ahead and used it.
NBC News spokeswoman Erika Masonhall says Haslet-Davis was due to take part in a roundtable discussion and had asked that the suspects’ names not be mentioned.
Masonhall says given the nature of the discussion, “Meet the Press” could not make that guarantee and regrets any distress caused by the miscommunication.
She says the NBC News president left a voicemail for Haslet-Davis apologizing for the confusion.
Since losing her foot in the marathon bombings on April 15 last year, Haslet-Davis has become a public advocate for those affected by the attacks, asking that people refer to her as a “survivor” rather than a “victim.”
In a longer post on her website, Haslet-Davis said she had asked the show’s producers for two things:
“ … one being that his name (and you know to whom I refer to) not be mentioned in my presence. Your decision to back out on that promise you made and the horrific way you brought that decision to my attention just minutes prior to taping was not only a cowardice move but a dishonorable one as well. To say that I am hurt is an understatement, for you not only disrespected me, you disrespected the survivors of the bombing and the victims memories by blatantly disregarding this request and putting the value of a terrorist’s name, who put a city in turmoil and caused irrevocable damage physically and emotionally to people of this city, over Boston’s integrity, fortitude, and my personal well being.
My second request you know of, to be referred to as a survivor, not a victim. This one you honored, but I think you forget what a victim truly is defined as. For I will not be a victim, not on anyone’s level, whether it be from a terrorist, or the press.”
This article originally appeared on news.com.au.