Globalization
has made the world even smaller and increased the borders of media. It is a
worldwide responsibility of media to present factual truth to the global
society. It is not a matter of whether one likes it, wants it or
needs it. The media’s responsibility could never be overemphasized when its
impact on world politics, economy, culture and other social sectors has
increasingly widened. It is absolutely true for a news organization to report the
truth as much as possible. It is the very basic requirement of the media
industry. But nowadays that is far from enough.
The media, like all
corporations, are no longer held accountable for their actions. Questionable
Celebrity photos and paparazzi culture has disgraced media and diverted media
from its responsibility. Social networks have become a good asset for the media
to explore into private lives. Media has become a basic tool to earn money and
with that many media corporations have started to probe into private lives to
dig dirt and violating the right to privacy.
One man's gossip may
be another man's news, but distinguishing between the two is often the key in
determining whether the press is guilty of invasion of privacy. Whether an
article or broadcast is newsworthy, whether the information was gathered in an
objectionable fashion, whether truthful information is nonetheless highly
offensive, all are considerations in weighing individuals' claims against the
news media. Invasion of privacy is a civil wrong, which can lead to jury trials
and potential claims for compensatory and punitive damages. The gist of the
wrongful act is a physical intrusion into a place where the reporter has no
lawful right to be, i.e., peering into windows, tape recording conversations of
others without consent, or reproducing private documents without consent.
Sometimes the intrusion is not physical, but is accomplished by electronic
devices. These kinds of intrusion and offensive behaviors question the moral
integrity of the journalist itself. Here we have to have moral standards upon
the media’s right to invade a private life. It is not the case of secrecy but
it is a case of moral value. Media has the right to search for a criminal and it
can follow such behaviors in such cases but invading a common man’s life is
morally incorrect.
The end of the
twentieth century was dominated by the extraordinary growth of the Internet as
a communications medium and commercial engine. It revolutionized the media
industry and made it more commercial. This dynamic, multifaceted category of
communication included not only traditional print and news services, but also
audio, video, and still images. This provided media with more power and more
responsibility but the real deal came when Internet was introduced with social
networks. Social networks became the pool of private information that could be
viewed publicly. The unprecedented power offered by social network media also
threatened individual privacy. The photo sharing and the YouTube videos became
a global phenomenon but it added to the risk of exposure of private
information. The attack by hackers and media releasing photos are the
consequences of media probing into the private lives of a common man. If the
media cannot handle the risk of securing theses private information then it
questions the extent of media’s right to probe for information.
Celebrities are most
haunted by media probing into their life. Paparazzi taking photos and the media
presenting rumors about celebrities in their gossip news present the signs of
yellow journalism. It
is common for media proprietors or executives and for consumers to distance
themselves from paparazzi, particularly during outbreaks of community emotion
such as followed the death of Princess Diana. However, they are complicit in
production, distribution and consumption of celebrity images. It makes media
look more like a financial institution. Paparazzi released the photos of
Princess Diana right after her death to the media houses which was a proof of
yellow journalism. Recent rumors of Jackie Chan and Rajnikant being dead are
all a consequence of lack of privacy and yellow journalism. The Paris Hilton
sex tape and Britney Spears photo without her underwear caught by the paparazzi
shows disrespect to privacy and women. These examples do prove that the
credibility of media decreases as it involves itself in menial affairs as such.
Media should report the consequences of Global warming, probe into corruption
by the government rather than exploring the privacy of common man.
Media should be a
responsible force rather than a financial power. Certainly finance is an issue
but media should take a step towards serious issues such as poverty and
education. Media should respect the privacy of an individual and be
responsible. Media is a good source which would go waste if it humiliates the
privacy of an individual.
