Poynter Online - Al's Morning Meeting
Interesting Q&A on the airing of the Chicago beating video. Pay particular attention to the thought processes that went into the decision and their ethical dimensions.
What factors push toward running the video? What concerns speak to not going with it?
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Reflection on a controversial video
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4 comments:
"One thing is certain: Had this video not existed, the impact of Albert's death would not have been the same. Not even close," while i agree with this statement, the fact that the police asked that the video not even be mentioned in the story and that request was totally disregarded really makes me wonder if showing the video helped? the police were worried about people not coming forward if the video is shown and i would like to know if that actually happened because i would hope that Fowler would feel extremely terrible if her news station was one of the main reasons why this poor kid's murder would go unresolved
"What more compelling example of the conditions near our high schools? It is one thing to describe a neighborhood as “bad” – it is another to watch. How better to communicate the danger near Fenger and other South Side and West Side high schools?"
This is the last sentence Fowler writes in her explanation, and to me, an excellent justification for their use of the video. As with war coverage, we may not want to see it...but how can those removed from these situations begin to comprehend their severity without the use of graphic images?
I suppose this is kind of beside the point of the ethics of showing the video, but I still can't believe the guy who shot it just continued to shoot the video and let that mob beat the victim to death.
I think it's hard to blame the videographer for not stopping the tape to protect Derrion from his attackers when supposedly, two policemen were watching up the road and did not feel safe intervening without back up (which inevitably came too late). By continuing to tape this event, the videographer opened our eyes to violence that has become a normality on some Chicago streets. He probably would not have been able to help Derrion (even the police couldn't), but by taping the event he documented a serious problem that needs to be addressed.
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