There’s one question the legacy media should be forced to answer: Do the identity and ideology of mass shooters matter or not?

In the days after the horrendous mass shooting at a shopping mall in suburban Dallas, the media quickly and hungrily uncovered vast swaths of information regarding the accused shooter.

Posts on obscure social media platforms were released. Apparent photographs of the person's Nazi tattoos were shared. And the ideology of white supremacy was almost immediately placed at the forefront of reporting, with outlets such as the Associated Press digging into “online activity” that “betrayed a fascination with white supremacy and mass shootings.”

Not to beat a dead horse, but the media’s relentless dedication to churning out clickbait in the aftermath of mass shootings not only demonstrates a complete disrespect for the victims of such attacks, but arguably drives a “ contagion theory ” surrounding mass shootings, rewarding these despicable killers with the “ media driven infamy ” they crave.

But this gets worse when we realize that something matters far more than clicks alone: the narrative. If the ideology of mass shooters is important — and reasonable arguments exist on both sides of this issue — then the legacy media must answer why only certain ideologies receive any level of scrutiny.

In Dallas, the shooter’s supposed far-right viewpoints were highlighted almost immediately. When arguably contradictory details arose, such as the fact that the shooter was reportedly Hispanic, the wider media apparatus mobilized to protect the narrative. For example, The View’s Ana Navarro declared that "being Hispanic or being black ... does not make you immune ... from being a white supremacist."

How convenient.

But when we look at another recent mass shooting event, one in Nashville, Tennessee, that targeted a Christian elementary school, the difference becomes clear. In the aftermath, neither the identity nor the ideology of the perpetrator seemed important. If anything, these details were actively dismissed or ignored. I wonder why ?

The subject of gun violence is an undeniably important one that our society must address. This is not to say that gun control is the solution — most evidence suggests otherwise — but that doesn’t mean that there’s nothing we can do.

We can improve security around soft targets such as schools and shopping centers. We can improve communication between law enforcement agencies. We can work to help law-abiding citizens defend themselves in the face of deadly threats.

But we must also address the media. Not only do media outlets fuel the frenzy surrounding mass shooting events, but they play into the shameless politicization of even the worst tragedies in American life.

When they make it clear that details such as identity, ideology, and motive only matter when politically convenient, they are essentially arguing that some mass shootings are more important than others and, as a consequence, that the lives of some victims are more important than others.

As long as the debate surrounding gun violence, and especially mass shootings, remains hobbled by the media’s undeniable bias, objective and effective debate will remain impossible.

Ian Haworth ( @ighaworth ) is the host of Off Limits with Ian Haworth .