A video recorded inside the courtroom during the Monday, August 26th, 2026 trial proceedings of Lindsay Clancy showed journalist Brittany Romano smiling, posing, and winking toward a pool camera broadcasting the trial's live feed. The clip quickly went viral, amassing millions of views across social media platforms and news outlets.

Romano, credentialed by Vanity Fair to cover the trial, has a personal connection to Lindsay Clancy. Vanity Fair confirmed her credentials and said they were interested in a personal essay by Romano about her experience growing up with Clancy.

The behavior sparked swift criticism on social media, where many users deemed Romano's actions inappropriate given the tragic nature of the trial involving the murder of three children. Romano later responded on social media, defending her expressions as intended for family members watching the broadcast. She explained, "I smile through anxiety. I smile when I’m uncomfortable. That is not indifference, it is a nervous system managing strain the only way it knows how."

Vanity Fair subsequently dropped Romano from covering the trial. The case centers on Lindsay Clancy, who is accused of killing her three children during postpartum psychosis. Romano stated, "For two years I have fought to cover the Lindsay Clancy case honestly, because at its center is a mother accused of killing her three children during postpartum psychosis, and because the conversation around her has spent that whole time swinging between calling her a monster and asking what actually broke inside her."

Romano also highlighted the importance of mental health awareness, saying, "If you actually believed a woman’s mental health mattered, you would not hand another woman a method, you would not treat suicide as a punishment, and you would not claim to protect one woman’s humanity while stripping another woman of hers."

Sources