A lawyer hit out at media sensationalism yesterday after commenting on a Taipei District Court decision to uphold the freedom of the press and throw out compensation claims from the mother of a murder victim who was filmed reacting to her son's murder.
Lee Han-chung (
The Taipei mother, whose son was kidnapped and murdered in Keelung in April 1999, sued SET TV (三立電視公司) in June of the same year, after the TV network refused to compensate her for what she claimed was the unauthorized broadcast of her image. The district court overruled her claim last week on the grounds that there was a constitutional guarantee of the freedom of the press.
The reaction shot of the mother was taken when her son's body was found by a search team at a fishery port in Keelung, where he had been dumped by the murderer.
The shot was first shown in May on the TV network's night show, which dramatized her son's kidnap and murder. The "documentary" was subsequently repeated four times.
Different from most general news commentary shows, the program dramatizes contemporary news stories and normally concludes with the host's own feelings about the issue or event.
Considering that her right to privacy had been infringed, the mother demanded NT$1.5 million in compensation and said the TV network's broadcasts of her had added to the pain she felt resulting from her son's death.
However, the district court overruled her claims on the grounds that the TV network is protected by the constitutional guarantee of the freedom of the press -- even though it was acknowledged the broadcasts were a violation of the plaintiff's right to privacy.
In its written judgment, the court acknowledged the plaintiff deserved the civil rights to protect her image from being broadcast. However, it noted, while both the freedom of press and individuals' rights of personality are protected under the Constitution, the former should override the latter.
Lee said he was disappointed with the court's decision decision yesterday, saying it failed to restrain sensationalism.
"It [the media] has gone too far and has created a situation under which any individual's rights could be trampled and sacrificed whenever `people's rights to know' is cited," Lee said.
Lin Feng-jeng (
"We can't let such violations of rights continue to happen without demanding some sort of restraint on the part of the media." Lin said.
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