LAST LAYOUT
Dilemma in digital communication 1
Dilemma in digital communication 2
Dilemma in digital communication
Shawnette Howard
SNHU
1/27/2022
Selected Case: Death as content: Social responsibility and the documentary film maker
Summary
The selected case talks about the social responsibility of filmmakers; what responsibility they have towards the community and society. The case talks about Eric Steele who is a documentary film maker. The film maker filmed a controversial documentary known as “the bridge” where he covered Golden Gate bridge which is a leading suicide location with different individuals travelling from around the world to commit suicide there. The main issues that are presented in the case are the motives and intentions of the film maker and what role he should have played in saving lives (Wilkins et al., 2021). I selected the case because it addresses a very important topic, the social responsibility of film makers. It also talks about a major legal issue; suicide which is considered as a crime in many states and countries.
Ethical and legal issues in the case
One of the ethical issues in the case is the intention and the motive of the film maker. According to the case, the government officials said that Steele had lied about his intentions when he was applying for a permit. He had indicated that his intention was to cover how powerful the bridge was and how it interacted with nature. He emailed the true intentions of the documentary to the officials later (Wilkins et al., 2021). This is an ethical issue because he was not honest and he did this because he knew that if he had made his intentions clear then probably the officials would not have permitted him to go on with it.
Another issue in the case is whether the film makers had the responsibility to save lives or not. Steele confessed that during filming they did not interfere with the “jumpers.” This means that even when the film makers knew that the intention of the people was to kill themselves, they did absolutely nothing to save their lives or stop them. New York times stated that the documentary shows how being focused on the camera lens resulted into the detachment of film makers with their surroundings.
The real question is what was the intention of the documentary and if the intention was to create awareness about suicide then how better should have the documentary achieved this. Looking at the positive side of the documentary is that it talks about an important issue which most people including the digital media do not talk about as much. However, there are sufficient attempts to avert the issue by the film maker (Wilkins et al., 2021). The film maker does not include the opinions and views of professionals such as psychologists or mental illness experts on the matter. This is because professionals can help explain the causes of suicide and what triggers such events.
Suicide is a legal issue in the case; suicide involves the action of an individual ending their own life. The film makers in the case capture people during the act and the question is whether by doing so they aid it in any way. Critics of the film argued that the film makers encouraged suicide through the documentary and this is because it might seem as if the documentary gives the people ideas on how to kill themselves. After the film, building a pedestrian suicide barrier was considered and this is a positive outcome from the documentary.
Justification of the topic
The topic in the case is the social responsibility of film makers and this is an important topic of study since most of the film makers do not have a clear understanding of what is expected of them. Looking at the topic will help clearly address what the film makers owe to the society and the community in which they are filming. Just like all other professionals, film makers have a range of responsibilities towards the society.
Film makers should not forget their duty towards their society in the craze of making money or becoming popular through the society. This is an important topic that is worth studying since the points and conclusions drawn from the study will be helpful not only for the film makers but also for advocates and legislators in this area. Film makers of documentaries have the responsibility of making sure that they have positive influence on the public and ensure that they represent reality.
Potential sources
The following are the potential sources that will be used for the final project which is due in Week 9.
1.Borum Chattoo, C., & Jenkins, W. (2019). From reel life to real social change: The role of
contemporary social-issue documentary in US public policy. Media, Culture & Society, 41(8), 1107-1124.
This article talks about the legislations that are related to film makers and their work and will help with information on the different laws and by laws and even look at the impact of any violations on the film makers (Borum et al., 2019).
2. Chattoo, C. B. (2020). Story movements: How documentaries empower people and inspire
social change. Oxford University Press.
I will use this article to look at the positive impact which documentaries have in the society. Documentaries help uncover important issues that face people and by bringing out some of these issues affected individuals end up getting help (Chattoo, 2020). The article also mentions other social responsibilities that will be used in the final draft.
3.Lester, P. M. (2018). Visual ethics: A guide for photographers, journalists, and filmmakers.
Taylor & Francis.
The article will be important to the final project, and this is because it addresses various ethical responsibilities of film makers. The article touches on how the film makers as public servants have a responsibility towards the people to make sure that they protect their wellbeing. Some of the issues addressed in the article include privacy issues where the film makers are required to protect the identity of people that do not want their identity disclosed who are part of their documentaries.
References
Borum Chattoo, C., & Jenkins, W. (2019). From reel life to real social change: The role of
contemporary social-issue documentary in US public policy. Media, Culture & Society, 41(8), 1107-1124.
Chattoo, C. B. (2020). Story movements: How documentaries empower people and inspire
social change. Oxford University Press.
Lester, P. M. (2018). Visual ethics: A guide for photographers, journalists, and filmmakers.
Taylor & Francis.
Wilkins, L., Painter, C., & Patterson, P. (2021). Media Ethics: Issues and Cases. Rowman &
Littlefield.