By Pat Eaton-Robb
HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) --Mark Barden and David Wheeler share intimate details of their families' struggles following the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre in "Newtown," a documentary that gets its first public showing in Connecticut this weekend.
The men, whose children were among the 26 people gunned down inside the school in December 2012, told The Associated Press they wanted people to understand the grief in Newtown and to open up some lines of communication among those affected by the tragedy.
Wheeler said that already has begun to happen. He said he's had conversations with fellow residents after private screenings in Newtown that wouldn't have taken place without the film.
"It is perfectly natural to be uncomfortable in the wake of this tragic, horrific experience. It is perfectly natural not to know what to say or do for any number of reasons," said Wheeler, whose son Ben died at Sandy Hook. "We humans make mistakes; we can be short-sighted and we can miss things, but in the end, connection and conversation can help ease that. I hope this film can help facilitate those conversations."
The film debuted earlier this year at the Sundance Film Festival and is showing this weekend at the Greenwich International Film Festival. It focuses on the aftermath of the shooting in the Newtown community, by following victims' families, first responders, teachers, neighbors and clergy.
"It moves past the failed political discourse into a real human level where we can see, think and feel through the lens of an authentic experience," said Maria Cuomo Cole, the producer of the documentary, which took three years to make.
Among other things, the film shows the struggle of an emergency medical technician who transported Ben Wheeler to the hospital and wrote a letter to his family. It explores the emotions of a priest who had to preside over numerous funerals; and of teachers feeling guilty about not wanting to go back to work.
"Still, all these years later, nobody knows what to do," said Abbey Clements, a second grade teacher at Sandy Hook, who huddled with her class during the shooting. "It's like when someone is sick and you don't want to bring it up because you don't want them to be sad; you don't know what to say. I think that's the experience here. I hope a message of this film is about having those hard conversations and connecting."
Barden said he chose to allow the filmmakers into his home, to talk to his now-teenage daughter, Natalie, and to use home videos of his son because he wanted to give people a "first-hand window" into the devastation of gun violence.
He said he knows the film will be difficult for some to watch, but said it's also important.
"You see Daniel animated as he was in his little life and how he still should be," said Barden, who has become an advocate for mental health and gun policy reform. "I hope that translates to the audience and gives them a deeper, more personal sense of loss and for what's at stake here."
Director Kim Snyder said she hopes the documentary shows a sense of purpose and community resilience in Newtown.
She highlights a scene in which Nicole Hockley, who lost her son Dylan in the shooting, sits down to talk with a parent from the same classroom, whose son survived.
"It's in some ways about how do you have those conversations, which I think in some ways is a beginning of healing for the community," said Snyder.
After screenings on Saturday and Sunday, many of those who appear in the film will participate in panel discussions with the audience.
"Newtown" is scheduled for a wider theatrical release in September and will later be broadcast on PBS.
California governor signs law to protect children from social media addiction
California will make it illegal for social media platforms to knowingly provide addictive feeds to children without parental consent beginning in 2027 under a new law Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Friday.
California follows New York state, which passed a law earlier this year allowing parents to block their kids from getting social media posts suggested by a platform's algorithm. Utah has passed laws in recent years aimed at limiting children's access to social media, but they have faced challenges in court.
The California law will take effect in a state home to some of the largest technology companies in the world. Similar proposals have failed to pass in recent years, but Newsom signed a first-in-the-nation law in 2022 barring online platforms from using users' personal information in ways that could harm children. It is part of a growing push in states across the country to try to address the impacts of social media on the well-being of children.
"Every parent knows the harm social media addiction can inflict on their children — isolation from human contact, stress and anxiety, and endless hours wasted late into the night," Newsom said in a statement. "With this bill, California is helping protect children and teenagers from purposely designed features that feed these destructive habits."
The law bans platforms from sending notifications without permission from parents to minors between 12 a.m. and 6 a.m., and between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. on weekdays from September through May, when children are typically in school. The legislation also makes platforms set children's accounts to private by default.
Opponents of the legislation say it could inadvertently prevent adults from accessing content if they cannot verify their... Read More