Media Ethics and Celebrity Death

Celebrities hold an odd place in society; they are often revered widely and therefore looked at on a much greater scale than the typical person. Celebrities put forth very particular versions of themselves to the public, and if they grow famous enough, their names snowball into a sort of cultural phenomenon. Once a star becomes internationally famous, he loses his humanness in the eyes of the public. It is precisely because of this supposed grandeur enveloping famous people that the media take great liberty in covering news about them.

Particularly in times of tragedy, the media generally seem to treat the famous more like caged animals than humans; the rights we maintain as people are inadvertently stripped from those in the spotlight, in life and in death. Because celebrities become such great cultural entities, people forget that they, too, are human. What’s most frightening about this phenomenon, however, is that the media help perpetuate the absence of humanness in the rich and famous by outputting sensational material and disregarding their basic human rights correlated with the press.

Robin Williams passed away at age 63 in his California home on Monday morning. Williams’ tragic suicide has provided us with yet another instance of disgrace on the media’s part; news outlets swooped down onto the story—not unlike vultures—before tearing it apart and outputting insensitive material that could be considered emotionally traumatizing for the victim’s family. Yes, Robin Williams, cultural icon and renowned comedian, was a person. He left behind a grieving wife and three children, who are all attempting to deal with the abrupt passing of their father. What I do not believe most major news outlets and gossip sites recognize is that Williams was more than a public figure bent on entertaining the masses. He was a human with a life outside of the spotlight. Williams had real struggles, joys, accomplishments and pain independent from the characters we have been fortunate enough to witness on the silver screen.

More important, perhaps, are the rights of the living; the media must come to realize that Williams’ family is entitled to the respect and privacy which we would be privy to in our own times of tragedy.

The fundamental issue here is that news outlets and gossip sites are violating ethical rules outlined for journalists. Unfortunately, Williams’ butchering in the media is not the first instance of coverage disrespecting a fallen public figure; similar disrespect occurred with deceased actor Seymour Hoffman several months ago, when the Wall Street Journal tweeted about his death before it had been confirmed that his family heard the news. Journalists have sucked the humanity out of these stories although death is one of the most fundamental motivating factors of human existence. In an age where the first one to broadcast important popular culture information wins, we have effectively lost the art of sensible journalism.

The Society of Professional Journalists is an international organization that has defined ethical writing since 1909. The Code of Ethics is divided into four subcategories, and most media outlets violate one section in particular when covering celebrity deaths. Minimizing harm and respecting those involved with the story are two major pillars in journalism that must be upheld to remain credible sources.

However, two highly influential news outlets have violated the “minimize harm” principle in the SPJ ethics code while covering the Robin Williams tragedy, which is defined as treating “sources, subjects and colleagues as human beings deserving of respect.” ABC News put links to aerial footage of Robin Williams’ home on their website on the night the news of his death was made public. Meanwhile, ABC also kept Williams’ family’s official statement asking for respect and privacy on the front page. Must I reiterate how despicable it is to send helicopters over the home of a grieving family?

ABC’s actions violate the “minimize harm” policy on multiple levels, therefore proving that journalism has come to treat celebrities and their families as less than human. The SPJ calls for journalists to “show good taste” and “avoid pandering to lurid curiosity.” More significant, however, is the call to “show compassion for those who may be affected adversely by news coverage.” Compassion is an element largely missing from all facets of Williams’ coverage, however it is particularly absent from ABC’s latest blunder. What has the media come to if we must stop to remember that famous people are—well—people?

According to The Wrap, the network has since apologized for the shameful helicopter stunt, claiming that the aerial footage had “no news value.” The issue, however, is not the value of the coverage, but the immense disrespect it perpetuated toward Williams and his love ones. According to the SPJ code, journalism is a profession that demands integrity, whose sole purpose is to tell the truth in a fair and responsible manner. Unfortunately, ABC is not the only major network that has violated this fundamental ideal to which all journalists must be held responsible.

Fox News anchor Shepard Smith deemed Williams a “coward” for succumbing to depression on Monday evening. Shepard, who seems blatantly uninformed about the nature of depression as a mental illness, slammed Williams and made irresponsible comments that disrespected the actor and his family. E! News reports that Shepard insensitively remarked that those suffering from depression feel that “something inside you is so horrible,” before claiming if ‘you’ commit suicide “you're such a coward…” He concluded, "Robin Williams, at 63, did that today." Shepard commented without regard for Williams largely because of the actor’s international fame; public figures, especially those who end their own lives, do not garner much human compassion from major news outlets. What is valued more than human life, in this case, is the story that comes from it.

Not only did Shepard’s comments violate nearly every aspect of the “minimize harm” policy toward Williams and the family he left behind, but they were also irresponsible toward the general pubic. Shepard and his deliberate smashing of depression could potentially encourage others suffering from the same condition to perform copycat suicides, which often happen when a public figure ends his or her own life. Journalists have a responsibility to act tastefully and protect not only the subjects of the coverage but the viewers as well.

I believe we must take Robin Williams’ death as a chance to re-evaluate how the media respond to tragic news in popular culture. Journalists and media professionals in particular must step back and understand what I will formulate as a simple syllogism: If celebrities are humans and humans deserve respect, then celebrities deserve respect. Journalism is supposed to be an industry of integrity. I think—particularly with celebrity news—writers must ask themselves to appeal to more ethical standards. It is simply unacceptable to treat someone as less than human because of his relative position in society. Until major news outlets and gossip sites alike recognize that figures like Robin Williams are people who have the right to privacy and respect in both life and death, there is still work to be done. One can only hope that through an extensive reexamination of ethical practices within the media, public figures can grow to receive the treatment they deserve as people first and entertainers second.

Image courtesy of INFphoto