This week's experience in terms of the media and Emily's pregnancy is a good example to look at from the perspective of privacy legislation.
On Monday I went to the Birmingham's Womens Hospital (previously known as the Maternity Hospital) with Emily to look at the 12 week scans of her pregnancy.
The day afterwards I had a tweet sent to me offering congratulations. On Saturday a journalist from the Sunday Mercury came to ask questions about the pregnancy.
Today it was the front page story of the Mercury and will be in the nationals tomorrow (some of them).
Now the privacy question is whether the law should be such that the journalists should be imprisoned for reporting this. I accept that it is inconvenient for the story to be reported. We had only told our daughter (Isobel) on Friday. Hence to have it published in a newpaper on Sunday is a bit earlier than we would have wished.
However, there is a real danger in controlling what truth is told by the media. I accept that the media should not be allowed to lie about people without regulation. However, there are lots of dangers in preventing them from telling the truth (I have a lot of examples).
From our personal viewpoint it was an irritating day where we needed to accelerate telling people. However, did it really warrant imprisoning journalists. I don't think so. Over to Eady J.
On Monday I went to the Birmingham's Womens Hospital (previously known as the Maternity Hospital) with Emily to look at the 12 week scans of her pregnancy.
The day afterwards I had a tweet sent to me offering congratulations. On Saturday a journalist from the Sunday Mercury came to ask questions about the pregnancy.
Today it was the front page story of the Mercury and will be in the nationals tomorrow (some of them).
Now the privacy question is whether the law should be such that the journalists should be imprisoned for reporting this. I accept that it is inconvenient for the story to be reported. We had only told our daughter (Isobel) on Friday. Hence to have it published in a newpaper on Sunday is a bit earlier than we would have wished.
However, there is a real danger in controlling what truth is told by the media. I accept that the media should not be allowed to lie about people without regulation. However, there are lots of dangers in preventing them from telling the truth (I have a lot of examples).
From our personal viewpoint it was an irritating day where we needed to accelerate telling people. However, did it really warrant imprisoning journalists. I don't think so. Over to Eady J.
Comments
I agree with you here, there is a time and place for things like this to be out in the open when the people closely involved choose too, makes no difference what I have heard and read lately about it but come on if your not allowed to broadcast first you news then what hope have us mere mortals, John I would be questioning the milkman, bin men and the next door neighbors cat.
Someone is leaking, for gods sake don't call the plumber until paternity test is carried out, no seriously John congrats anyways.
i agree imprisonment for something like that on a first offence seems to be a lil bit strong....but then again you get a chemical labotomy and life in prison being tortured for defending yourself when attacked in this cuntry......but surely everybody has a right to keep things like that private? should they wish to? reagrdless of who they are or what they do for a living or whether they have any hair or not?
taught to believe it was already law, article 8, DPA or soemthing....and only good manners to seek consent b4 hand? medical records are a damnsite more intimate than nuddy pictures of yourself kept on a phone that u lose/ got stolen.....
do Doctors still even bother taking that 'oath', knowing they wd be forced to break it as soon as they start 'work'....?
i agree imprisonment for something like that on a first offence seems to be a lil bit strong....but then again you get a chemical labotomy and life in prison being tortured for defending yourself when attacked in this cuntry......but surely everybody has a right to keep things like that private? should they wish to? reagrdless of who they are or what they do for a living or whether they have any hair or not?
taught to believe it was already law, article 8, DPA or soemthing....and only good manners to seek consent b4 hand? medical records are a damnsite more intimate than nuddy pictures of yourself kept on a phone that u lose/ got stolen.....
do Doctors still even bother taking that 'oath', knowing they wd be forced to break it as soon as they start 'work'....?
none of my business I know but still wd really like to know....
but nobody officially imprisoned with regard to this one though as far as i can figure....
but who is Eady J?