CMT appear at Press Freedom Inquiry, Sydney stabbing media frenzy, First Draft on Hong Kong protests
From Sacha Molitorisz, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Centre for Media Transition
Last Tuesday was a big day for journalism. In the morning, Centre for Media Transition Co-Directors Derek Wilding and Peter Fray appeared with lawyer Richard Coleman before the Parliamentary Inquiry into Press Freedom, being conducted by the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security. Alongside senior media executives, Wilding and Fray argued that press freedom is at risk of suffering a death by a thousand Acts, as one law after another threatens to stifle journalism. (More below.)
Then, on Tuesday afternoon, a Sydney man killed one woman and stabbed another, in an incident that showed the value of gun control laws, but also raised a number of major ethical issues for Australia's news media. If the victim was engaged as a sex worker, how should this be reported? If the man yelled "Allahu Akbar", should this be dubbed terrorism, despite obvious signs of serious mental illness? And how should images and videos shot by eyewitnesses be incorporated into reports in a way that respects the dignity and privacy of those on the scene, while protecting the identity of undercover police?
On Tuesday morning, the Parliamentary Inquiry heard that the news media serves the public interest. Following Tuesday afternoon's violence, it became apparent that we need to clarify the codes and standards that guide reporting in a digital age, so that the news media does in fact serve the public interest.
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