Situation Definition
In class we discussed many different case studies that caused people to debate ethical issues about them. One such case study has to do with the reporting on the Las Vegas shooting and how media outlets reported it with video and graphic images. This brings up the ethical issue of protecting the public and showing graphic images. Another case study that discussed the ethical issue of protecting the public and protecting the victim was the case that Fox decided to air the tape of a drowning victims 911 call.
Analysis
The Las Vegas shooting and other mass shootings in America have become more and more common in recent years. The question of showing footage or showing graphic images when reporting about the shooting is ethical or not has become more at the fore front of our attention. “While reporting the “who” of news is a standard journalistic practice, some journalists have taken note of these findings on mass shooting contagion and have begun to question how they cover these stories.” (Dahmen, 2018). Describing or showing the perpetrator and the victims is a question that every media outlet will discuss and debate. The Las Vegas mass shooting coverage would show the shooting as it was happening and that was reported as too graphic for many viewers.
Protecting victims in cases is extremely important because often we see that families can be more affected by the news coverage around a victim’s death. In the case of the 911 call that was between a drowning victim and the operator, the family did request that it wasn’t played because they didn’t want more attention their way. However, one news station decided to air it because they felt as though it was necessary to the story. The public also might not want to hear the tape because of the detail and the frustration they might feel.
Conclusion
These issues are important to discuss because we need to be aware of the public’s interest and the victim’s families interest. If we do not pay attention to this we may end up causing more harm than good. The lessons I learned were mostly in that area. In class we listened to the tape of the 911 call and it really disturbed me and, while it was good to hear, it also made me uncomfortable and was something I did not want to hear.
References
Dahmen, N. S. (2018). Visually Reporting Mass Shootings: U.S. Newspaper Photographic Coverage of Three Mass School Shootings. American Behavioral Scientist, 62(2), 163-180. doi:10.1177/0002764218756921
MacLellan, L. (2017, October 03). Do we have a moral duty to watch the painful videos from a mass shooting? Retrieved from https://qz.com/1092174/las-vegas-shooting-video-do-we-have-a-moral-duty-to-watch-footage-of-mass-shootings/
Ceferin, R., & Poler, M. (2017). Journalistic Code of Ethics and Journalists’ Liability for Damages. Clanki, 54(5), 715-731,909.