So, it looks like we won’t be getting the full scoop on Kyle Shanahan’s car crash because the Palo Alto Police Department has decided to sit on that body cam footage. I submitted a public records request, and surprise, surprise – they’re keeping it under wraps. This raises serious questions about transparency and accountability, especially in a world where we’re constantly told how innocent until proven guilty we should be. But let’s break this down.

Mainstream media outlets like CNN and NBC will inevitably get their narrative spun tightly around this incident—painting Shanahan either as a fragile figure needing protection or, conversely, scrutinizing him under a microscope to push whatever agenda they have running. What we’re seeing is classic media play: leaking what they deem necessary while blocking access to potentially damaging footage. Why the hesitance? Are they afraid of what the footage might reveal, or is it that they have an agenda to maintain?

Fox News, in contrast, might frame this as another example of police overreach, using Shanahan’s status to drum up a narrative that suggests authority is above reproach while simultaneously taking it down a notch. They’ll happily pounce on the ‘anything goes’ mentality when it suits them. But the bottom line is this: where is the integrity in reporting if we can’t get the full story?

Let’s not forget, the refusal to release this footage raises alarm bells about police accountability in general. Are we comfortable with the idea that powerful figures can hide behind a curtain of public relations and selective transparency? We must demand more than crumbs of information, or else we’re just feeding the machine.