Ethics: When Being a Journalist Meets Being a Human

By Sara Newman on 09/24/2009

No one knows what Lance Cpl. Joshua "Bernie" Bernard's thoughts were when he died from being struck by a grenade while in an ambush in Afghanistan on Aug. 14. Is it possible that he would have wanted his death to be told to the world in an effort to show the reality and brutality U.S. troops have faced over the past eight years of war?

Associated Press photographer, Julie Jacobson, felt a duty to photograph the 21-year-old lying on the ground with severe leg injuries; his fellow Marines tending to him. Against Bernard's family's wishes, the AP distributed the photo and launched a debate asking the question, when does being a journalist reign over being a human being?

According to an article by Micha J. Stone in the Portland Humanist Examiner, "We should not bury our heads in the sand. Journalists exposed the horror of the Vietnam war, and ultimately played a factor in ending that horrible campaign. Knowledge is power. Nobody should be forced to see the photo, but making it available is a good thing."

I agree with Stone's claim.  The picture of "The Falling Man" was one of the most disturbing images I had ever seen.  Despite the omission of gun shot wounds and physical signs of pain, this was an image of a man falling to his death and I knew what became of him which was disturbing enough.  However, I'm glad I was able to see it because after I did, 9/11 meant something new to me.  I learned about an entirely different horror that came out of the September 11th terrorist attacks and even gained a new perspective because I knew, though I could never understand, what the Twin Tower jumpers were thinking.  Sometimes the most uncomfortable images and topics are the most important to shed light on because they create change.

However, I also must take into consideration the fact that the family of the dying marine did not want this picture to be published.  Was it ethical for the editor to ignore the family's wishes when a person's death deserves to be handled in the most delicate way possible?  According to the Examiner, Defense Secretary Robert Gates was against the publishing of the photo and many news outlets chose not to use it.  While the public may have a right to know what happened to this soldier it may not be the editor's right to decide what to do with the soldier's death. That choice resides with the family of the victim who can best decide how the soldier would want to be remembered. 

To unveil (the truth) or not to unveil?  That is the question when the emotions of a human being butts heads with the duty of a journalist.

(Additional Photos: "Dying Marine" thefirstpost.co.uk, 2009)