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When Does the Media Cross the Line of Newsworthiness to Exploitation?

Aired July 25, 2003 - 14:54   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.


KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Well they're proof positive to some but to other those grizzly photos of Uday and Qusay Hussein are a strictly negative development. So too the videos. Where to put them on TV has been debated behind the scenes by all of us here and every other responsible broadcaster. And you know the results.
Joining us now, "Washington Post" writer and host of "CNN'S RELIABLE SOURCES" Howie Kurtz. Thank you so much for being with us, Howie.

HOWARD KURTZ, HOST, "RELIABLE SOURCES": Sure.

PHILLIPS: Well, let's talk about what's going on here. Pictures, now videotape. What's the deal?

KURTZ: Well, I'm troubled, to be perfectly honest. about the degree to which CNN and the other cable networks are relentlessly showing these photos and the morgue footage today. Obviously it's newsworthy, obviously you have to show them to some degree.

But recall though just a few short months ago, U.S. officials were expressing outrage when Saddam Hussein's state-controlled network ran those pictures of American POWs, some alive, some dead. So it looked like some of that outrage was kind of selective. We don't hear any of that from administration officials today because these pictures serve their propaganda purposes.

PHILLIPS: Now, Howie, does it make sense to say, OK, but they were the bad guy and we should be able to show these pictures because of what they did to the Iraqi people and others. And you shouldn't show pictures of soldiers because they're the ones coming in, they're the heroic ones trying to save the day. Is that a valid argument?

KURTZ: Well, look, I mean Uday and Qusay were pretty evil human beings. I have no sympathy for them whatsoever. But initial reports are that some in the Muslim world are offended by the pictures, particularly putting makeup on the corpses and so forth, and feel like this is not being very well handled by the American media.

Also, the Pentagon-stated reason for putting out these pictures is to convince skeptics in the Arab world that in fact the two Hussein brothers are dead. Well, here in America, we know they're dead. We don't have any skepticism about it. Again, you have to show the pictures, but I've seen this footage so many time now on the cable network that I'm wondering, to be perfectly crass about it, whether there's also some ratings grabbing involved.

PHILLIPS: Exploitation versus the need of -- really need -- well, the need to have ethical journalism here. I mean you think it's across the bounds here? Is this exploitation?

KURTZ: I think the volume and the sheer frequency in which this has become, as I say, kind of video wallpaper is a bit over the top.

Newspapers wrestling with this, too. Newspapers traditionally very skittish about putting -- showing pictures of dead bodies, and so almost no American newspapers, although there are some over in Britain, have put these photos on the front page and most of them run them inside the paper, small size. "The Washington Post" had a strange compromise. They only ran one brother, not the other and they said if you really want to see the bad stuff, you can go to our Web site.

I think there's a fear it of kind of pushing it in people's faces at the breakfast table or at newsstands. But of course television, every moment is the front page on television so this has become kind of inescapable.

I do appreciate the fact that disclaimers are often voiced about these are grizzly photos and you may want to turn away. But certainly it seems like nobody's shying away from the television world.

PHILLIPS: Well, Howie, you make a good point. On the other side of things, We're in the newsroom turning it off when we're eating our lunch. So, Howie Kurtz -- yes, there you go. Thank you so much.

KURTZ: Thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com




Exploitation?>


Aired July 25, 2003 - 14:54   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Well they're proof positive to some but to other those grizzly photos of Uday and Qusay Hussein are a strictly negative development. So too the videos. Where to put them on TV has been debated behind the scenes by all of us here and every other responsible broadcaster. And you know the results.
Joining us now, "Washington Post" writer and host of "CNN'S RELIABLE SOURCES" Howie Kurtz. Thank you so much for being with us, Howie.

HOWARD KURTZ, HOST, "RELIABLE SOURCES": Sure.

PHILLIPS: Well, let's talk about what's going on here. Pictures, now videotape. What's the deal?

KURTZ: Well, I'm troubled, to be perfectly honest. about the degree to which CNN and the other cable networks are relentlessly showing these photos and the morgue footage today. Obviously it's newsworthy, obviously you have to show them to some degree.

But recall though just a few short months ago, U.S. officials were expressing outrage when Saddam Hussein's state-controlled network ran those pictures of American POWs, some alive, some dead. So it looked like some of that outrage was kind of selective. We don't hear any of that from administration officials today because these pictures serve their propaganda purposes.

PHILLIPS: Now, Howie, does it make sense to say, OK, but they were the bad guy and we should be able to show these pictures because of what they did to the Iraqi people and others. And you shouldn't show pictures of soldiers because they're the ones coming in, they're the heroic ones trying to save the day. Is that a valid argument?

KURTZ: Well, look, I mean Uday and Qusay were pretty evil human beings. I have no sympathy for them whatsoever. But initial reports are that some in the Muslim world are offended by the pictures, particularly putting makeup on the corpses and so forth, and feel like this is not being very well handled by the American media.

Also, the Pentagon-stated reason for putting out these pictures is to convince skeptics in the Arab world that in fact the two Hussein brothers are dead. Well, here in America, we know they're dead. We don't have any skepticism about it. Again, you have to show the pictures, but I've seen this footage so many time now on the cable network that I'm wondering, to be perfectly crass about it, whether there's also some ratings grabbing involved.

PHILLIPS: Exploitation versus the need of -- really need -- well, the need to have ethical journalism here. I mean you think it's across the bounds here? Is this exploitation?

KURTZ: I think the volume and the sheer frequency in which this has become, as I say, kind of video wallpaper is a bit over the top.

Newspapers wrestling with this, too. Newspapers traditionally very skittish about putting -- showing pictures of dead bodies, and so almost no American newspapers, although there are some over in Britain, have put these photos on the front page and most of them run them inside the paper, small size. "The Washington Post" had a strange compromise. They only ran one brother, not the other and they said if you really want to see the bad stuff, you can go to our Web site.

I think there's a fear it of kind of pushing it in people's faces at the breakfast table or at newsstands. But of course television, every moment is the front page on television so this has become kind of inescapable.

I do appreciate the fact that disclaimers are often voiced about these are grizzly photos and you may want to turn away. But certainly it seems like nobody's shying away from the television world.

PHILLIPS: Well, Howie, you make a good point. On the other side of things, We're in the newsroom turning it off when we're eating our lunch. So, Howie Kurtz -- yes, there you go. Thank you so much.

KURTZ: Thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com




Exploitation?>