►News coverage of the legal system can be unethical if it more about curiosity than providing public understanding:
- The Gabber, an independent news organization in Florida, explained why it stopped publishing police-blotter content. It noted that blotter items often lack context, and they may foster fear or racist thinking. The Gabber vows “to do a better job of getting more details to give readers a bigger picture.”
- The Poynter Institute argues that crime-blotter coverage is not good journalism. “The public good – rather than the public’s interest – should be a prevailing factor,” writes Doris Truong.
Sources:
- https://thegabber.com/publishers-note-how-we-report-crime/
- https://www.poynter.org/ethics-trust/2021/its-time-for-journalism-to-break-the-cycle-of-crime-reporting/
►Journalists typically steer clear of showing graphic content. But as media ethicist Patrick L. Plaisance argued in 2022, sometimes “[j]ournalists have a moral imperative to jolt news audiences out of complacency from time to time,” with “respectfully graphic” coverage of crime scenes that show the true effects of gun violence.
The Washington Post did that in its 2003 “Terror on Repeat” series, publishing disturbing-but-real images of the effects of mass shootings. It warned audiences before showing the content, and executive editor Sally Buzbee published a column explaining its decision to publish and the steps it took to minimize potential harm for victims’ families.
Sources:
- https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/virtue-in-the-media-world/202207/does-gun-violence-demand-more-graphic-images-in-the-news
- https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/interactive/2023/ar-15-force-mass-shootings/
- https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2023/11/16/about-ar-15-graphic-content/
►Raina Kumra reflected on the media coverage of her father’s murder, and how Frontline, a PBS documentary series, revisited the story in a way she felt invaded her family’s privacy.
Source: https://www.cjr.org/first_person/frontline.php
While a unique case, The Washington Post and The New York Times decided to publish a 35,000-word supplement written by Ted Kaczynski, who was known as the Unabomber. The decision to publish the lengthy document eventually led to Kaczynski’s capture.