A Kerala minister’s exit after a sting operation spurs a debate on privacy v/s public interest.
What is the operation about?
A Malayalam television channel had broadcasted an audio recording allegedly of the then Transport Minister of Kerala purportedly seeking sexual favours from a woman who had come to him for assistance.
The women side of the conversation was not put out.
Later it was found that the woman journalist with the channel had conducted the sting, suggesting this was in reality a kind of honey trap.
The CEO of the channel went on air to render an apology, presumably for misrepresenting matters.
The CEO and eight other employees from the channel have been booked under sections of the Information Technology Act and the Indian Penal Code.
What is the ethics behind sting operation?
The ethics of sting operations is among the most fiercely debated issues in journalism.
Some generally agreed guidelines are -
Any such operation that uses false pretences, with its necessary violation of the interviewee’s trust and privacy, must serve a larger public interest that far outweighs such violation.
It also must be used as a last resort, when there is no other means of acquiring the information sought.
It must be the outcome of considerable editorial deliberation.
They should never be intended to entrap or induce people into committing wrongdoing or embarrassing them badly.
It is imperative that publications and broadcasters explain vital public interest for conducting them.
A sting cannot be an excuse to grab eyeballs with immodest and essentially private content, or a shortcut to make a point merely by shocking the reader or viewer.
Doing so risks eroding that goodwill and leaving journalists facing harsh charges.
