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CNN Sunday Morning
Interview With Bruce Weinstein
Aired November 23, 2003 - 07:42 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN ANCHOR: Some say the media madness surrounding the Michael Jackson case is reminiscent of other high profile celebrity investigations. And those critics say that that kind of frenzy is not exactly a good thing.
Our guest, Bruce Weinstein, is an ethicist and the author of "What Should I Do: Four Simple Steps to Making Better Decisions in Everyday Life?" He joins us this morning from New York.
So Mr. Weinstein, I'm just taking a crack here that you believe that the media have tried Michael Jackson already unfairly?
BRUCE WEINSTEIN, AUTHOR, "WHAT SHOULD I DO?": Andrea, Michael Jackson is a victim. He's already been tried and convicted in the court of public opinion. And it is simply outrageous.
You know, one of the fundamental principles in our society is that people are innocent until proven guilty. And yet, this entire media circus has completely undercut that notion. We've gone to war because we believe that our way of life, our democratic principles, are superior to all others. And yet, this media feeding frenzy is making a mockery of our principles.
KOPPEL: So help us out, then. How can those of us in the media do our jobs, which is to report on the developments in the Michael Jackson case, without going overboard, and as you say, trying and convicting him in the court of public opinion?
WEINSTEIN: Well for one thing, simply showing the same footage of him in handcuffs over and over, zooming in to his compound, scrutinizing his every move is part of the problem. It's already violating his right to privacy.
Now when you become a celebrity, you do not give up your right to privacy. And yet, that's what's happened to this man. It may very well turn out to be that he is guilty of these crimes, but we have to take one big step back and wait for the facts to come out.
Step number one of making any responsible decision is to get the facts. And we don't have the facts yet.
KOPPEL: OK, but isn't that part of the media's job then in gathering the facts? And unfortunately, it doesn't always happen in one lump sum. You get it piecemeal, and putting the facts out there? Do you think it would be more fair if the media put the facts out there, without always showing the video of Michael Jackson in handcuffs?
WEINSTEIN: Andrea, that's part of the problem, but also having these pundits on, who are comparing him to a pedophile, and you as you hearing on all sorts of news programs. Not just on CNN, but across the spectrum, you're hearing people say well Michael Jackson meets the profile of a pedophile because of these reasons. And simply likening him to a pedophile, based on his past behavior, is already convicting him. And that's the problem. We are not letting due process take its course. So it's not simply showing the same video footage over and over, but having people come on and make assertions that have no basis in fact.
Now his behavior is admittedly bizarre. And I'm not saying that his behavior is without question. But if Michael Jackson is guilty of any crime, the crime is simply this. He has not released a good album in over 10 years. That's his crime. That's his only crime. It's an artistic one. So far, we have no basis to believe that he's guilty of being a child molester.
KOPPEL: Do you think that the American people's curiosity, this wanting to be a fly on the wall of stories like this, is normal? Or is it unusual for this society?
WEINSTEIN: Well, it's both normal and it's pathetic, because -- I mean, just think about a few years ago, when Princess Diana's funeral took over the airwaves. And at the bottom of the screen, as this big parade was occurring on every station, you see Mother Theresa dies. Now you know, if you had to compare saints, don't you think Mother Theresa would take slight precedence over Princess Diana? But because of our fascination with celebrity, that's all that we got for days and days on end.
And the same thing with Michael Jackson. Now you know, this all started with the O.J. Simpson circus a decade ago. But Michael Jackson's trial in the coming 18 months is going to make O.J. Simpson's trial look like small claims court. And we as responsible viewers of CNN and other programs have to say wait a minute, we need to be responsible about this. We believe, again, that people should be treated as innocent until proven guilty. We have to wait until the facts come out.
KOPPEL: Michael Weinstein, thank you.
WEINSTEIN: Bruce Weinstein.
KOPPEL: Bruce, I'm so sorry. Bruce Weinstein, thank you so much for giving us a reality check here and trying to make some of us pay attention to this very important story. We really appreciate your coming in.
WEINSTEIN: Thank you, Andrea.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired November 23, 2003 - 07:42 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN ANCHOR: Some say the media madness surrounding the Michael Jackson case is reminiscent of other high profile celebrity investigations. And those critics say that that kind of frenzy is not exactly a good thing.
Our guest, Bruce Weinstein, is an ethicist and the author of "What Should I Do: Four Simple Steps to Making Better Decisions in Everyday Life?" He joins us this morning from New York.
So Mr. Weinstein, I'm just taking a crack here that you believe that the media have tried Michael Jackson already unfairly?
BRUCE WEINSTEIN, AUTHOR, "WHAT SHOULD I DO?": Andrea, Michael Jackson is a victim. He's already been tried and convicted in the court of public opinion. And it is simply outrageous.
You know, one of the fundamental principles in our society is that people are innocent until proven guilty. And yet, this entire media circus has completely undercut that notion. We've gone to war because we believe that our way of life, our democratic principles, are superior to all others. And yet, this media feeding frenzy is making a mockery of our principles.
KOPPEL: So help us out, then. How can those of us in the media do our jobs, which is to report on the developments in the Michael Jackson case, without going overboard, and as you say, trying and convicting him in the court of public opinion?
WEINSTEIN: Well for one thing, simply showing the same footage of him in handcuffs over and over, zooming in to his compound, scrutinizing his every move is part of the problem. It's already violating his right to privacy.
Now when you become a celebrity, you do not give up your right to privacy. And yet, that's what's happened to this man. It may very well turn out to be that he is guilty of these crimes, but we have to take one big step back and wait for the facts to come out.
Step number one of making any responsible decision is to get the facts. And we don't have the facts yet.
KOPPEL: OK, but isn't that part of the media's job then in gathering the facts? And unfortunately, it doesn't always happen in one lump sum. You get it piecemeal, and putting the facts out there? Do you think it would be more fair if the media put the facts out there, without always showing the video of Michael Jackson in handcuffs?
WEINSTEIN: Andrea, that's part of the problem, but also having these pundits on, who are comparing him to a pedophile, and you as you hearing on all sorts of news programs. Not just on CNN, but across the spectrum, you're hearing people say well Michael Jackson meets the profile of a pedophile because of these reasons. And simply likening him to a pedophile, based on his past behavior, is already convicting him. And that's the problem. We are not letting due process take its course. So it's not simply showing the same video footage over and over, but having people come on and make assertions that have no basis in fact.
Now his behavior is admittedly bizarre. And I'm not saying that his behavior is without question. But if Michael Jackson is guilty of any crime, the crime is simply this. He has not released a good album in over 10 years. That's his crime. That's his only crime. It's an artistic one. So far, we have no basis to believe that he's guilty of being a child molester.
KOPPEL: Do you think that the American people's curiosity, this wanting to be a fly on the wall of stories like this, is normal? Or is it unusual for this society?
WEINSTEIN: Well, it's both normal and it's pathetic, because -- I mean, just think about a few years ago, when Princess Diana's funeral took over the airwaves. And at the bottom of the screen, as this big parade was occurring on every station, you see Mother Theresa dies. Now you know, if you had to compare saints, don't you think Mother Theresa would take slight precedence over Princess Diana? But because of our fascination with celebrity, that's all that we got for days and days on end.
And the same thing with Michael Jackson. Now you know, this all started with the O.J. Simpson circus a decade ago. But Michael Jackson's trial in the coming 18 months is going to make O.J. Simpson's trial look like small claims court. And we as responsible viewers of CNN and other programs have to say wait a minute, we need to be responsible about this. We believe, again, that people should be treated as innocent until proven guilty. We have to wait until the facts come out.
KOPPEL: Michael Weinstein, thank you.
WEINSTEIN: Bruce Weinstein.
KOPPEL: Bruce, I'm so sorry. Bruce Weinstein, thank you so much for giving us a reality check here and trying to make some of us pay attention to this very important story. We really appreciate your coming in.
WEINSTEIN: Thank you, Andrea.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
