Media harassment of public figures from the ethical perspective of journalists in Madrid

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.4185/10.4185/RLCS-64-2009-868-880-893

Keywords:

Journalistic ethics, reporters, famous people, paparazzi

Abstract

In the journalistic ethics sphere there is hardly any exhaustive field work on collective behaviour processes for obtaining information, much less on the media harassment to public figures and on the ethical evaluation of the professionals themselves. In-depth interviews (30) and surveys on media professionals (410) indicate that journalists in Madrid show themselves largely in favour of the harassment suffered by politicians currently in power. Supporters and detractors of the chase after scoop-selling-celebrities are equally divided. On the other hand, journalists clearly reject the persecution of members of the royal household –especially when their families are affected–, and are also against the persecution of relevant characters who do not trade their privacy.

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Author Biographies

Carlos Maciá Barber, Carlos III University of Madrid

Carlos Maciá Barber has been Professor of Journalistic Editing since 2003. He graduated in Information Sciences from the Complutense University of Madrid (1996) and did his doctorate in Journalism at the San Pablo−CEU University (2001), where he received a research grant in the Department of Journalism for a groundbreaking thesis in Spain on the figure of the ombudsman in the press, which was awarded the Prize for the Best Doctoral Thesis of the Faculty of the Humanities and Communication Sciences (2000−2002).

His areas of research focus on the analysis of the informative, journalistic and interpretive genres in the press (news, report, feature article and interview), journalistic ethics and the phenomenon of “public journalism”.

He is the lead researcher in the project under the auspices of the national research and development plan (Plan Nacional I+D+I), “Ethics and excellence in news journalism. Journalistic ethics from the point of view of the public’s expectations in Madrid” (SEJ2006-05631-C05-03/SOCI) (2006 to 2010), funded by the Ministry of Science and Innovation.

He has taught postgraduate courses at Spain’s national distance learning university UNED (2005, 2006) and on the Erasmus programme at the Beira Interior University (Portugal) (2009). He has taught classes on journalistic genres for some fifteen postgraduate courses, seminars and meetings of specialists. He has written more than twenty papers and presentations for academic conferences.

He worked as a journalist in the press office of the Sociedad Estatal Lisboa’98, a national foundation with a cultural remit, and the Spanish daily newspaper El Mundo. He has belonged to the Spanish Society of Journalists (Sociedad Española de Periodística) since 2002, and is coordinator of its journal Textual & Visual Media for the Madrid autonomous region.

He has been a professorial member of the Programme for Secondary School Collaboration of the Carlos III University of Madrid since 2002. In 1992, he received the Diploma de Honor del Cuartel General del Ejército (CGE), a prize awarded to journalists by the Spanish army.

Most recent publications:

  • El reportaje de prensa. Análisis del propósito y los recursos del género periodístico en suplementos de diarios de información general españoles. Madrid, Universitas, 2007. 220 pages. ISBN: 84–7991-202-4
  • La figura del Defensor del Lector, del Oyente y del Telespectador. Los paladines contra el periodismo descaminado. Madrid, Universitas, 2006. 362 pages. ISBN: 84–7991-192-1
  • “La depauperación del reportaje en las redacciones se bosqueja en el aula universitaria. Estudio de campo de las deficiencias relevantes (2002–2008)”, Estudios sobre el Mensaje Periodístico, no. 14, October, 2008, pp. 483–495. ISSN: 1134–1629
  • “Todos no somos ya periodistas. Un análisis de la utopía del periodismo ciudadanodesde la perspectiva del reportaje interpretativo”, Estudios sobre el Mensaje Periodístico, no. 13, October, 2007, pp. 123–144. ISSN: 1134–1629
  • “Un modelo de Defensor del Lector, del Oyente y del Telespectador para el perfeccionamiento del ejercicio del periodismo en España”, Comunicación y Sociedad, no. 1, volume XIX, June, 2006, pp. 47–66. ISSN: 0214–0039

Susana Herrera Damas, Carlos III University of Madrid

Susana Herrera Damas has degrees in Audiovisual Communication (University of Navarra, 1998) and Sociology (UNED, 2004) and a doctorate in Audiovisual Communication (University of Navarra, 2002).

Premio Extraordinario de Doctorado, she is the author of 3 books and more than 50 articles published in academic journals of repute.

She has worked at the University of Navarra (1998-2003) and the University of Piura, Peru (2003-2007). She currently works at the Department of Journalism and Audiovisual Communication at the Carlos III University of Madrid, where she teaches courses on radio and new technologies.

Her research revolves around the study of genres in radio and the analysis of different forms of public participation in the media.

Most recent publications:

-HERRERA, S., Cómo elaborar reportajes en radio, La Crujía, Buenos Aires, 2008. ISBN: 978-987-601-061-0
-MARTÍNEZ-COSTA, M.P. y HERRERA, S., La crónica radiofónica, Instituto Oficial de Radio y Televisión, Madrid, 2008. ISBN: 978-84-88788-69-6
-MARTÍNEZ-COSTA, M.P. y HERRERA, S., “Rasgos característicos del comentario radiofónico”, in Textual and Visual Media, no. 1, 2008, pp. 213-236. ISSN: 1889-2515
-REQUEJO, J.L. y HERRERA, S., “La incorporación que las emisoras musicales españolas dirigidas a los jóvenes están haciendo de los recursos participativos de la web 1.0 y 2.0”, in La metamorfosis del espacio mediático, Barcelona, 2009, pp. 287-296. ISBN: 978-84-936959-2-7
-HERRERA, S.; “Las cualidades del buen creador de reportajes de radio”, in Re-presentaciones, no. 2, January-July 2007, pp. 81-101. ISSN: 0718-4263.

References

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Bovee, W. G. (1991): “The End Can Justify the Means, But Rarely”. Journal of Mass Media Etichs, 6(3), septiembre, pp. 135−145.

González, G. (2005): Diario de un paparazzi: el otro lado de la prensa del corazón. Barcelona: Random House Mondadori.

Ordaz, P. (2003): “Los famosos se sienten acosados”. El País, 16 de febrero, suplemento Domingo, pp. 10.

Pérez Ariza, C. (2007): “El periodismo rosa como telenovela de no−ficción en el marco de la libertad de expresión”. Revista Latina de Comunicación Social, 62. Recuperado el 30 de junio de 2009 de: https://dx.doi.org/10.4185/RLCS-62-2007-738-151-159

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Sinova, J. (2003): “Acerca de la responsabilidad pública del periodista: la verdad, los derechos de los públicos y otras exigencias éticas del trabajo informativo”. Doxa Comunicación, 1, pp. 171−184.

Soto, L. (2005): “Prensa rosa: el juego sucio de periodistas y famosos”. Estudios sobre el Mensaje Periodístico, 11, pp. 193−209.

Susperregui, J. M. (2006): Famosos pillados. Madrid: Espejo de Tinta.

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Published

2009-07-23

How to Cite

Maciá Barber, C., & Herrera Damas, S. . (2009). Media harassment of public figures from the ethical perspective of journalists in Madrid. Revista Latina de Comunicación Social, (64), 880–893. https://doi.org/10.4185/10.4185/RLCS-64-2009-868-880-893

Issue

No. 64 (2009)

Section

Miscellaneous
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