As the media collectively covers the South Carolina shooting death of Walter Scott and the subsequent murder charges filed against the police officer who killed him, Time magazine published a provocative cover to spotlight the issue.
The cover features big, bold lettering that states, “Black Lives Matter,” followed by, “This Time The Charge Is Murder.”
Below the text appears cell phone footage of Walter Scott, an African American man, fleeing North Charleston police officer Michael Slager, who subsequently shot him eight times.
“When we got news of this story, it felt like both part of this larger narrative, but also a moment that might signal a turning point,” Deputy Managing Editor Radhika Jones told TheWrap, noting that Time had done covers on similar stories involving Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown.
“This is a narrative we’ve been following closely and our readers are interested in,” she continued.
Jones and her team feel this story — and the video capturing Slager gunning down Scott — will cause people to demand change going forward.
Slager has been charged with murder, and protestors are calling for swift action. The shooting comes as tensions on race and police brutality continue to swirl following the deaths last year of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri and Eric Garner in Staten Island, New York at the hands of police.
Supporters of both African-American men were outraged when the police officers who shot them were not indicted.