Olympic luger death video raises question of ethics
Did NBC have the right to broadcast Nodar Kumaritashvili's death?
Brooke Norton
Issue date: 3/4/10 Section: News
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The media's decision to publicly air footage of the accident and the failed resuscitation of Kumaritashvili caused wide spread controversy and revealed how virile social media technology has become.
A public outcry against the continued airing of the tragic event resulted in the footage eventually being pulled.
"NBC in particular has received poor reviews for choosing to air the video the following day at the actual opening of the Olympics," said Ashley Michelle Papon of globalshift.org.
Though video of that day has been discontinued from airing on television, the internet is still supplying the video and still images to web surfers.
"The search, 'luge tragedy video,' is currently number three in Google's hot trending searches," said Don Osborne of Geek.com.
"Sometimes we do go too far. This case was border line," said UNA Associate Professor of Radio-Television-Film, Dr. Janet McMullen.
McMullen teaches Foundations and Ethics. This course teaches communication majors the basic ethical issues in communication.
"At what point do we stop being journalists, bringing stories which are significant to our readers and viewers and which affect their lives and become exploiters of the victims of tragedy because sensational pictures draw eyeballs?" McMullen said.
"When the traffic slows down and the rubberneckers gawk, it's not because somebody has beautiful roses in the front yard. It's because something awful happened, someone is in pain and has been broken in some way," she said. "That is morbid curiosity. That is disrespect."
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