Hulk Hogan Verdict - Paper Example

Miranda (2016) writes about the battle of privacy and media freedom. In this case, wrestling star, Hulk Hogan’s sex tape was published in the media, whom he sued for damages. The court awarded him a staggering $115 million in damages. Opinion leaders in the article cement the argument of privacy and reiterate that the digital age has made things much more difficult. Even if the judgment by the lower court may not set legal precedence, it laid down a marker on how the intrusion of privacy could be treated in legal battles. The court’s decision insists on the fact that anyone’s privacy, in which case nudity and sex life classify, can only be distributed or shared with their consent. Gawker.com, the defendants in the case, relied on the provisions of freedom of the press in the First Amendment. However, the court argued that press freedom does not trump the right to privacy.

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The Right to Privacy

The article was published on the Harvard Law Review (HLR) in 1890, expressing the importance of protection for individuals and their property. The article castigates the media for making gossip and a trade item in their business. As such, the author believes that the media overstepped its bounds of decency and commercialized invasion of people’s privacy. It is appalling that the media uses space meant for important issues to discuss gossip and hearsay; it is something the author describes as triviality destroying the robustness of thought processes. The law secured the right for every individual to determine the extent to which sentiments, thoughts, and emotions emanating from them could be shared. However, the author appreciates that matters of public interest could be published, with the right to privacy notwithstanding. The author concludes that partakers of publication matters must consider a person’s privacy before publishing anything. They have a responsibility to ensure the right to privacy is protected at all times.

Privacy: Looking for Solitude in the Global Village

The article begins with a recap of the Clinton–Lewinsky Scandal, reminding the reader just how the media has stretched the issue of privacy beyond repair. Other than the victim’s privacy, the media has made explicit private matters news items. Public and private lines disappear almost entirely when politics and celebrity status are concerned. The media reports their issues without any consideration of the impact it has on the subjects. The author refers to the 1890 article on right to privacy on the HLR, providing legal and ethical definitions of the concept of privacy. Media’s intrusion into people’s private space has become so widespread that it appears like the correct norm. As much as some piece of information is newsworthy, a journalist should apply discretion to determine whether it is intrusive and injurious to the subject. With such a determination, the journalist can make an ethical decision on whether or not to reveal private information. The author advises that the journalist must understand the public’s right to know is not applicable to all matters. They must draw a line between matters of privacy and matters of secrecy.

Questions

1. At what point does a journalist draw a line between privacy and secrecy, and determine that the piece of news at hand needs reporting?
2. Should legal constraints guide journalists, or should they observe ethics and morals in reporting?
3. Should the law punish privacy intruders so heavily and deter others from committing similar mistakes?