I write about action cameras for a living, and this morning I turned on my radio and found myself listening to hear about the latest Trump shooting attempt or threat – this time by Ryan Wesley Routh on a golf course in Florida.
What surprised me was not a story from the south of the US about a gunman levelling a weapon at a politician, especially one as controversial as Donald Trump. Let's face it, American politics has had its fair share of these incidents, JFK, Gabrielle Dee Giffords, and Trump a few weeks ago among others. Even – in the comparatively peaceful UK – Jo Cox was killed by a far-right
Even as I was getting on with making coffee and, I'm afraid to say, beginning my mental assessment of how it'll play in the balance of politics in the US ("How believable are two unsuccessful assassination attempts, one coming just as you seem to be losing the momentum on the campaign?"), the radio was chattering on and I heard the announcer on the BBC Today Program describe the contents of the shooter's bag.
He had been arrested – not shot and killed – and Law enforcement and according to the BBC and CBS "Law enforcement found the rifle, a scope, two backpacks with ceramic tile and a GoPro camera in the bushes at the scene."
Not "an action camera", you'll note. A GoPro.
OK, we're not getting a specific model, but that's more detail than we're getting about the rifle (so far just "AK-47-style rifle"). The news agencies are also not getting information about the brand of the backpacks!
If we pause to think about it for a moment, it shows just how successful the 'GoPro' name has permeated into public consciousness. I wouldn't be entirely surprised if the camera in question turned out to be another of the best action cameras, like the DJI Osmo Action 4, but the police/FBI reporting simply said 'GoPro' because that is the word for that kind of camera.
Of course, this kind of recognition is not exactly unprecedented. When I was young, we said 'Walkman' to mean personal cassette player, even though it was Sony's brand.
I'd be willing to bet that, had the shooter had a bigger camera, it would have just been 'a camera' or 'a DSLR-type camera' (even if it had been mirrorless!).
I'm not saying this is the kind of event Adam Woodward wants his brand associated with, but it highlights how iconic it has become.
I wonder if it recorded any evidence?
