There has been much comment over the weekend about TV3‘s disclosure of the serious illness with which Brian Lenihan, Minister for Finance, has recently been diagnosed. This poses many questions, but I want to ask only one: will the public anger at TV3’s disclosure provide the political impetus – or perhaps simply political cover – to proceed with the enactment of the (misconceived) Privacy Bill, 2006?
There seems to be a proble where one media outlet runs with a story in an apparent attempt to be first to break news. In the recent past we’ve had the Liam Lawlor case where the media over a FF ard fheis week-end in an attempt to get the story dast printed untruths rather than wait and get the story right. Is this another such case. While the rest of the media now turn their focus on TV3 as their own angle in covering the matter?
I disagree strongly with TV3’s decision to run with the story ahead of Lenihan’s statement in January. I’d prefer to see how any complaint to the Broadcsting Complaints Authority would go before any change in the law should be contemplated. Introducing a privacy law would remove any individual’s right to make a complaint or raise a privacy matter about any broadcast or publication