Ethics With News of Mass Importance

Al-Jazeera continued to cement itself as a reliable and growingly powerful network after breaking the news of Moammar Gaddafi's death last week. Yet, before Al-Jazeera broke the story, they were faced with many key ethical questions to answer.

After keeping their media presence in Libya when other media did not, Al-Jazeera was the first news agency to receive a video captured by cell phone showing people storming around Gaddafi's dead and bloodied body. This led them to ask: what do we do with this video?

The most pressing issue was to confirm that it was Gaddafi's body in the video. People within the network agreed it was him, and they also had sources confirm Gaddafi's death before they ever received the video. Although they weren't 100%, there was enough credibility to run with the story and feel confident ethically to confirm the news.

Next, Al-Jazeera needed to decide how to post the video. Many media outlets are uncomfortable with showing dead bodies due to ethical concern and a lack of 'need-to-see' form the audience. This scenario was different, however, as this story had tremendous impact. Had the video been of some random civilian, in no way should a news agency publish it. But, this wasn't a random civilian, and the story carried a lot of weight.

Al-Jazeera published the video online with a disclaimer to its viewers claiming the content of the video was gruesome. Many other media outlets that posted this video followed suit. This was a very critical move for media agencies looking to publish the video, because it warned the audience and followed ethical codes with matters of this nature.

This whole scenario created a huge risk for Al-Jazeera as well as other media agencies reporting after the news broke. There is a risk of offending the audience by publishing a video showing people dragging a dead body, and there is a larger risk of confirming the wrong death: what if it had not of been Gaddafi?

Ultimately, most news agencies handled this the right way. Considering the importance of this story, the media could not turn its back on it just because of ethics. The video needed to be posted so people could see for themselves and have confirmation, even if that meant disturbing a few viewers who were not prepared to see such content. It is important to understand that for other cases involving deaths, guidelines should be different.

But, for a story this big and that greatly affected many people in the region, Al-Jazeera handled their coverage in an appropriate manner and solidified themselves as being a strong player in the world of media. This case is a reminder that for such strong stories, it is important to verify and follow ethical procedures even if they are slightly altered considering the stories' impact.