BSA Decisions Ngā Whakatau a te Mana Whanonga Kaipāho

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Summary

An accident in which a young cyclist had been hit and killed by a truck was reported

on 3 National News broadcast between 6.00–7.00pm on March 14. Included in the

item was a shot of the dead cyclist's legs sticking out from a blanket covering his

body.

Ms Taylor complained to TV3 Network Services Ltd, the broadcaster, that it was

insensitive to include that particular shot and that it breached the broadcasting

standards relating to taste and privacy.

Explaining the context of the accident which had been reported and while

acknowledging that the particular image might upset some viewers, TV3 denied that it

either breached the boundaries of acceptable taste on a news programme or that it had

intruded on the family's grief. It declined to uphold the complaint. Dissatisfied with

TV3's decision, Ms Taylor referred her complaint to the Broadcasting Standards

Authority under s.8(1)(a) of the Broadcasting Act 1989.

For the reasons below, the Authority declined to uphold the complaint.

Decision

The members of the Authority have viewed the item complained about and have read

the correspondence (summarised in the Appendix). As is its practice, the Authority

has determined the complaint without a formal hearing.

Ms Taylor complained to TV3 about an item broadcast on 3 National News on 14

March 1995. It reported an accident that morning in Christchurch where a schoolboy

cyclist had been hit by a truck and killed. The pictures showed the cyclist lying on

the ground at the scene of the accident with his upper body covered apparently by a

blanket. His legs were visible. The body was later shown being put into an

ambulance and other shots showed the damaged bicycle and the boy's shoe under the

truck.

Ms Taylor said that the pictures were insensitive and breached the standards relating

to taste and privacy.

TV3 assessed the complaint under standards G2 and G17 of the Television Code of

Broadcasting Practice. The first requires broadcasters:

G2  To take into consideration currently accepted norms of decency and taste

in language and behaviour, bearing in mind the context in which any

language or behaviour occurs.

Standard G17, which TV3 applied to the privacy aspect of the complaint, reads:

G17 Unnecessary intrusion into the grief and distress of victims and their

families or friends must be avoided. Funeral coverage should reflect

sensitivity and understanding for the feelings and privacy of the bereaved.

Pointing out that neither the victim's face nor body were visible and expressing

sympathy for the dead boy's family and friends, TV3 said that the acceptable bounds

of taste were not breached and the shots did not amount to an intrusion into the

family's grief. In addition, TV3 explained that the pictures had been deliberately

shown at a time of a rising road toll to remind cyclists, particularly school children, of

the need to be careful on the road.

When she referred her complaint to the Authority, Ms Taylor maintained that the

shots, apparently shown without the family's permission, were an unnecessary

intrusion into their grief. In response to TV3's road safety argument, she said that the

novelty of viewing a dead body would have overshadowed the safety message.

Ms Taylor also expressed concern about the apparent trend in New Zealand's

television news to show dead bodies.

In determining the complaint, the Authority noted the concern expressed by TV3

about road safety at a time when the road toll was increasing. The Authority also

took into account its approach that limitations should not be placed on the media in

reporting newsworthy stories without good reason. It also noted the pathos in

showing the cyclist's shoe by itself under the truck.

The Authority decided that TV3 had exercised a degree of sensitivity in its coverage of

the accident. The item reported the cyclist's death and the brief shot of the legs

protruding from under a blanket was not macabre. This shot, while close to the

dividing line between what should and should not be shown, and the others were not

gratuitous and, the Authority concluded, did not breach the requirements for taste in

standard G2; nor did they involve unnecessary intrusion into the grief of the victim's

family or friends in contravention of standard G17.

For the above reasons, the Authority declines to uphold the complaint.

Iain Gallaway
Chairperson
May 1995

Appendix

Ms Taylor's Complaint to TV3 Network Services Ltd - 17 March 1995

Kim Taylor of Auckland complained to TV3 Network Services Ltd about an item on 3

National News broadcast between 6.00 - 7.00pm on 14 March.

Noting that the item was about a young cyclist who had been hit by a truck and killed,

Ms Taylor said the boy's legs were seen sticking out from under a sheet. Describing

the pictures as insensitive, Ms Taylor alleged a breach of the standards relating to

taste and privacy.

TV3's Response to the Formal Complaint - 28 March 1995

Assessing the complaint under standards G2 and G17 of the Television Code of

Broadcasting Practice, TV3 said the item dealt with the death of a schoolboy killed

when his bike collided with a truck. It continued:

The pictures showed the boy lying on the ground at the scene of the accident,

his upper body covered with what appeared to be a blanket. His legs were visible.

Other shots showed the damaged bicycle under the truck, the body being put

into an ambulance, a wide street scene where the accident happened and the

boy's shoe under the truck.

While acknowledging that some of the images might be upsetting to some viewers,

TV3 believed that they did not exceed the acceptable bounds of taste on a news

programme. Neither the boy's face nor body were visible and the shots were not

dissimilar to those of other accident scenes. TV3 expressed sympathy for the dead

boy's family and friends but did not accept that shots amounted to an intrusion into

their grief. It declined to uphold the complaint.

In addition, TV3 attached some comments from that day's news producer. He wrote:

We included the story because it came at a time when the road toll was rapidly

rising and was well ahead of the same time the previous year. While the death in

itself could be viewed as just one more statistic, the pictures helped reinforce

just how careful people need to be on the roads - and that cyclists were particularly

vulnerable. By screening it at 6pm, there was a reasonable expectation that

other cyclists, particularly school children, might see the pictures and heed the

message.

Mr Taylor's Complaint to the Broadcasting Standards Authority - 5 April 1995

Dissatisfied with TV3's response, Ms Taylor referred her complaint to the

Broadcasting Standards Authority under s.8(1)(a) of the Broadcasting Act 1989.

She maintained that the coverage would have caused unnecessary intrusion into the

grief of the boy's whanau and friends as it was horrific to show even the boy's legs.

Ms Taylor dismissed as irrelevant TV3's argument that the coverage would make

people more aware of the danger. Members of her family were aware of the dangers

already and she considered that the novelty of a dead body would overshadow that

issue.

Commenting that she had lived in the Philippines where it was not uncommon to

show dead bodies on television, Ms Taylor was concerned that news coverage in New

Zealand was heading in the same direction - "legs first".

She concluded by noting that the item would have been acceptable if the boy's

whanau had agreed to the pictures being used to educate others.

TV3's Response to the Authority - 18 April 1995

TV3 advised the Authority that it did not wish to comment further on the complaint.