How does media coverage of a terrorist act depend on the ethical system which media presents?
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Abstract
List of contents 3
List of figures 4
1. Introduction
2. Literature Review
1. Critical issues in media coverage of terrorism
2. Media ethics: discussion about self-regulation mechanisms
3. Libertarian and communitarian ethical systems
3. Methodology
1. Research aims and objectives
2. Research design
3. The quantitative method employed in this study
4. The qualitative method employed in this study
5. Reliability and validity
4. Findings and discussion
1. Quantitative findings
2. Qualitative findings
5. Conclusion
6. References
List of appendices
Appendices
List of contents 3
List of figures 4
1. Introduction
2. Literature Review
1. Critical issues in media coverage of terrorism
2. Media ethics: discussion about self-regulation mechanisms
3. Libertarian and communitarian ethical systems
3. Methodology
1. Research aims and objectives
2. Research design
3. The quantitative method employed in this study
4. The qualitative method employed in this study
5. Reliability and validity
4. Findings and discussion
1. Quantitative findings
2. Qualitative findings
5. Conclusion
6. References
List of appendices
Appendices
While discussing ethical issues one can rarely find right or wrong answers, but there should always be “well-reasoned” ones.
It is obvious that until the end of the 1940s the biggest world danger was totalitarianism, and in the democratic states the freedom to gather and spread information was strengthening; freedom of expression and minority rights was seen as basic values in the information policy.
Approximately up to the middle of the 1970s terrorism was not considered as a serious threat to the sovereignty of countries. Media coverage of terrorist acts around the world, with a possible exception of Israel, was a matter of internal competition for information between the police forces and the journalists within individual countries.
The use of terrorism as a violent political strategy has been increasing steadily throughout the world during the past four decades. Terrorist acts became a usual issue of news around the world (Kushner, 2003). Since the hostage-taking of the Israeli team by the Palestinian terrorists during the 1972 Munich Olympic Games the role of the media reporting this sort of event is discussed (Alter, 2001; Blaisse, 1992; Gerrits, 1992; Hewitt, 1992; Paletz and Boiney, 1992; Paletz and Tawney, 1992; Picard, 1991; Schbley, 2003; Schmid, 1992; Shpiro, 2002; Viera, 1991; Wilkinson, 1974, 1997).
The mass media are among the most influential enterprises in a democratic society, standing at the crossroad between the citizens and their political, economic and social institutions. In addition, they are instrumental in the transmission of cultural values. The most frequent terrorist technique for influencing the mass media and is the creation of terrorist events with “the object of seducing or trapping the mass media into giving the terrorists huge publicity and portraying them as such a powerful force that it would be folly to resist them” (Wilkinson, 1997).
It would be irrational to deny that modern media have had a great effect on increasing the publicity potential of terrorism. International media practice faces a new stage of development in the area of freedom of opinion and information rights, especially in covering terrorist acts.
Researchers (Wilkinson, 1997; Schmid, 1992; Frost, 2000) consider that the mass media need to work harder at devising methods of self-restraint that are both appropriate and effective in covering the exceedingly sensitive subject of terrorism. To examine whether and how the media with different cultural backgrounds understand and work on that issue was the start point for this study.
Both the United Kingdom and Russia have separatists’ movements claiming independence for regions they live in and regularly committing terrorist acts. BBC and Channel “Russia” are comparable in terms of territory covered by broadcasting. At the same time the two media have two different cultural backgrounds and traditions in journalism. These were the reasons to choose them for comparison.
This dissertation is devoted to the coverage of terrorism in the media in terms of ethical standards and values. Both liberal and communitarian media principles are examined. The basis for the research is media coverage of the hostage-taking in theatre “Na Dubrovke”, Moscow, 23-26 October 2002, by two broadcasting companies - the BBC and Channel “Russia” (as presented on their respective web-sites at http://news.bbc.co.uk and http://www.vesti.ru).
Literature review presents a diversity of views on the media coverage of terrorist acts. Also, it demonstrates different points of view on regulating journalists’ professional activity. In the end, it reviews the libertarian and communitarian media value systems.
The methodology chapter shows the details of the research design, combining content analysis of text and video materials published on the two above¬mentioned web-sites and qualitative interviews with journalists, editors, and people responsible for editorial policy in the respective broadcasting companies.
Research results are presented in the “Findings and discussion” chapter of the dissertation, which consists of key findings from the content analysis and the interviews. The chapter discusses the most important findings of the study and gives a synthesis of these findings with the arguments identified in the literature.
The Conclusion sums up the undertaken research and outlines perspectives for further studies.
It is obvious that until the end of the 1940s the biggest world danger was totalitarianism, and in the democratic states the freedom to gather and spread information was strengthening; freedom of expression and minority rights was seen as basic values in the information policy.
Approximately up to the middle of the 1970s terrorism was not considered as a serious threat to the sovereignty of countries. Media coverage of terrorist acts around the world, with a possible exception of Israel, was a matter of internal competition for information between the police forces and the journalists within individual countries.
The use of terrorism as a violent political strategy has been increasing steadily throughout the world during the past four decades. Terrorist acts became a usual issue of news around the world (Kushner, 2003). Since the hostage-taking of the Israeli team by the Palestinian terrorists during the 1972 Munich Olympic Games the role of the media reporting this sort of event is discussed (Alter, 2001; Blaisse, 1992; Gerrits, 1992; Hewitt, 1992; Paletz and Boiney, 1992; Paletz and Tawney, 1992; Picard, 1991; Schbley, 2003; Schmid, 1992; Shpiro, 2002; Viera, 1991; Wilkinson, 1974, 1997).
The mass media are among the most influential enterprises in a democratic society, standing at the crossroad between the citizens and their political, economic and social institutions. In addition, they are instrumental in the transmission of cultural values. The most frequent terrorist technique for influencing the mass media and is the creation of terrorist events with “the object of seducing or trapping the mass media into giving the terrorists huge publicity and portraying them as such a powerful force that it would be folly to resist them” (Wilkinson, 1997).
It would be irrational to deny that modern media have had a great effect on increasing the publicity potential of terrorism. International media practice faces a new stage of development in the area of freedom of opinion and information rights, especially in covering terrorist acts.
Researchers (Wilkinson, 1997; Schmid, 1992; Frost, 2000) consider that the mass media need to work harder at devising methods of self-restraint that are both appropriate and effective in covering the exceedingly sensitive subject of terrorism. To examine whether and how the media with different cultural backgrounds understand and work on that issue was the start point for this study.
Both the United Kingdom and Russia have separatists’ movements claiming independence for regions they live in and regularly committing terrorist acts. BBC and Channel “Russia” are comparable in terms of territory covered by broadcasting. At the same time the two media have two different cultural backgrounds and traditions in journalism. These were the reasons to choose them for comparison.
This dissertation is devoted to the coverage of terrorism in the media in terms of ethical standards and values. Both liberal and communitarian media principles are examined. The basis for the research is media coverage of the hostage-taking in theatre “Na Dubrovke”, Moscow, 23-26 October 2002, by two broadcasting companies - the BBC and Channel “Russia” (as presented on their respective web-sites at http://news.bbc.co.uk and http://www.vesti.ru).
Literature review presents a diversity of views on the media coverage of terrorist acts. Also, it demonstrates different points of view on regulating journalists’ professional activity. In the end, it reviews the libertarian and communitarian media value systems.
The methodology chapter shows the details of the research design, combining content analysis of text and video materials published on the two above¬mentioned web-sites and qualitative interviews with journalists, editors, and people responsible for editorial policy in the respective broadcasting companies.
Research results are presented in the “Findings and discussion” chapter of the dissertation, which consists of key findings from the content analysis and the interviews. The chapter discusses the most important findings of the study and gives a synthesis of these findings with the arguments identified in the literature.
The Conclusion sums up the undertaken research and outlines perspectives for further studies.
In this final chapter, a number of conclusions will be drawn about the study. These will be considered in light of the established objectives and the overall aim of the paper. These section will than provide recommendations for further research emerging from the study.
This study aimed to compare how the web-sites of the BBC and Channel “Russia” represented the Moscow hostage crisis 23-26 October 2002, to explore to what extent did journalists and editors take into account any codes of ethics while reporting the event, and to investigate how different media ethical values are reflected in the coverage.
Therefore, the researcher has examined some fundamental aspects of media coverage of terrorist acts. Also different points of view on regulation of journalists’ professional activity were described. In addition, the libertarian and communitarian media value systems were examined.
Thus survey within quantitative content analysis and qualitative research approach in the form of interviews was undertaken. Primary research revealed findings that support the academic literature.
The findings revealed that the coverage of terrorist acts depend on the ethical system which media presents.
The content analysis showed that the most questionable issues were labelling the hostage takers and focusing on the state representatives’ and special forces’ actions. There was a difference of opinion of the two media regarding those questions. The Russian web-site more focused on special forces’ actions in texts avoiding to show them in video. The British media paid more attention to average people (hostages, residents, relatives) possibly linking them with the audience of the media.
Respondents from the British web-site demonstrated that their decisions in difficult ethical situations were made in accordance with the liberal concept that jjournalists are meant to present the facts and the facts only for the audience equipped with seemingly unbiased material to analyze and draw conclusions. Respondents from the BBC strongly stated their independence from the state. This is clearly links to the liberal value system.
At the same time respondents from Channel “Russia” showed that they mostly used personal value systems and made their conclusions according to the situation and individual ethics. Russian journalists and editors strongly stand for victims and against attackers showing their attempt to achieve the communitarian “common good”.
As David L. Paletz and Laura L. Tawney (1992, p.105) said, the absence of a code of conduct does not necessarily mean untrammelled or detached coverage of a terrorist act. It was visibly confirmed by the research. Discussing ethical issues there are not always right or wrong answers, but there should always be “well-reasoned” ones.
This study aimed to compare how the web-sites of the BBC and Channel “Russia” represented the Moscow hostage crisis 23-26 October 2002, to explore to what extent did journalists and editors take into account any codes of ethics while reporting the event, and to investigate how different media ethical values are reflected in the coverage.
Therefore, the researcher has examined some fundamental aspects of media coverage of terrorist acts. Also different points of view on regulation of journalists’ professional activity were described. In addition, the libertarian and communitarian media value systems were examined.
Thus survey within quantitative content analysis and qualitative research approach in the form of interviews was undertaken. Primary research revealed findings that support the academic literature.
The findings revealed that the coverage of terrorist acts depend on the ethical system which media presents.
The content analysis showed that the most questionable issues were labelling the hostage takers and focusing on the state representatives’ and special forces’ actions. There was a difference of opinion of the two media regarding those questions. The Russian web-site more focused on special forces’ actions in texts avoiding to show them in video. The British media paid more attention to average people (hostages, residents, relatives) possibly linking them with the audience of the media.
Respondents from the British web-site demonstrated that their decisions in difficult ethical situations were made in accordance with the liberal concept that jjournalists are meant to present the facts and the facts only for the audience equipped with seemingly unbiased material to analyze and draw conclusions. Respondents from the BBC strongly stated their independence from the state. This is clearly links to the liberal value system.
At the same time respondents from Channel “Russia” showed that they mostly used personal value systems and made their conclusions according to the situation and individual ethics. Russian journalists and editors strongly stand for victims and against attackers showing their attempt to achieve the communitarian “common good”.
As David L. Paletz and Laura L. Tawney (1992, p.105) said, the absence of a code of conduct does not necessarily mean untrammelled or detached coverage of a terrorist act. It was visibly confirmed by the research. Discussing ethical issues there are not always right or wrong answers, but there should always be “well-reasoned” ones.
