Antoine Dodson…I’ll be the first to admit I laughed out loud
when I saw this news clip for the first time, I even found myself being able to
recite his lines from memory, but what I couldn’t remember was if the rapist
had ever been caught, a question I still can’t answer today. That simple fact
is what transforms this news clip from funny to a media mistake, is the lack of journalistic responsibility.
Is it funny, well, yes, but is that the point of news
reporting, no.
According to the Society of Professional Journalists Code of
Ethics (1996), reporters should “be sensitive when seeking or using interviews
or photographs of those affected by tragedy or grief” and additionally, they
should, “show good taste” and “avoid pandering to lurid curiosity” (para. 3).
Did they follow these guidelines in the Dodson case, I would have to say no.
The way this story was reported not only lost the
seriousness of the situation, it was also framed to appear almost like a
mockery of low-income African American families. The clip was more like
something that would appear on Saturday
Night Live or Mad TV, not
something to be taken with merit on the evening news.
It’s difficult to consider yourself media literate, and
better schooled than most in the shortcomings and techniques of modern
journalism, only to get lost in the surface comedy of the Dodson case. And,
although, I can admit I laughed, I can’t say that it makes me proud. Again, the
fact that a woman was almost raped, should never be cause for even a shorthanded
snicker, but again, the news media should take a more responsible approach in
the way they frame their segments, especially ones concerning such serious
issues. And further, those standards of responsible reporting practices should
be kept regardless of race, gender, sexuality or any other defining
characteristics.
Society of Professional
Journalists. (1996). SPJ Code of Ethics. Retrieved
from http://www.spj.org/ethicscode.asp
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