Investigative Journalism Essay

Section 3 of the PCC’s editor’s code of practice states “Everyone is entitled to respect for his or her private and family life, home, health and correspondence, including digital communications.” (2014) But on what terms would it be deemed obligatory for the media to invade someone’s privacy in order to get closer to a necessary truth. Investigative journalism plays a huge role in exposing those truths and can have both a negative and positive after effect. For example, in circumstances where the exposing of privacy has led to negativity it could lead to the possibility of a defamation lawsuit. Whereas exposing necessary truths such as anything unlawful or within the public’s best interest could help save lives as well as bring light to important issues that need addressing.

The human rights act 1998 came into force in the United Kingdom in October 2000. A humans right to freedom of expression comes under article 10 and includes freedoms to “hold opinions and to receive and impart information and ideas without inference by public authority and regardless of frontiers.” (EHRC, 2014) although in the circumstance that a citizens freedom of expression is challenged the law also states. “The exercise of these freedoms, since it carries with it duties and responsibilities, may be subject to such formalities, conditions, restrictions or penalties as are prescribed by law and are necessary in a democratic society” (EHRC, 2014)

In our modern society almost every online act is a freedom of a citizen or a professional expression. Some content is stored and kept safe amongst small groups and some is made publicly available. Yet all acts can generate transactional information which can be viewed by many other parties over the web. This m...

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...d on to investigating magistrates.

In the case of invading ones privacy it may have to be the case that some moral and ethical codes in the journalistic practice may have to be broken in order to expose a necessary truth. It is however important that if a journalist is to break any moral and ethical rules that they break them in the defence of public interest. In an ideal world a rule that needs to be regulated for the invasion of privacy lies within the press and paparazzi themselves. News gathering processes, particularly in the obtaining of images and information about celebrities needs to be regulated to a certain amount of decency and respect. It is however undeniable that without a reasonable expectation of privacy law in place it would be an unfair expectation of human rights for both citizens and celebrities to give full exposure on their lives to the press.