Explore a Decade of Dave Cullen's Research
When A Shooting Strikes
I was distraught to need to create this page eighteen years after Columbine, but here we are: learning how to hide from killers a little better instead of disarming them. I've kept it simple, with 2 sections on this page:
Run, Hide, Fight
I have been advising my family and friends to run/hide/fight (in that order!) since 1999, because cops and FBI agents quietly told me that's what they told their kids. But it took over 15 years for this to reach a national audience. I'm elated that it has.
​
Key: Do these in order!
Always run. Only hide if that's impossible. Only fight as a last resort.
​
The short videos are helpful, too. They offer great examples, and memorable visuals. TSA has endorsed the concept, and created videos, but I think this one is great:
Active Shooter Pocket card
TSA created this useful active shooter pocket card. Here is the entire card, but you can also download a PDF here.
Decoding media coverage
Thank God, most of us won't ever face a shooter. But we are all bombarded by media coverage every time one of these bastards strikes. There is a lot you should know, so I wrote Skeptic's Guide to Media Coverage of Mass Shootings for The New Republic after maddening coverage of a shooting in 2015.
​
To simplify, we created this simple graphic. I've also included a great one done by NPR's On The Media. I will add more links soon. (You can read all my published work on school shooters here — for New York Times, Vanity Fair, Slate, Salon, Newsweek, New Republic, Guardian, Times of London, etc.)
