In 2003 Scoop displayed graphic images of innocents, including children, killed by the United States led coalition forces. Scoop justified the publishing of those images in an editorial that stated: To sanitise the reality of warfare is abhorrent to those serving the public interest. To censor images of capture, of death, as a consequence of war, is wrong. If Scoop were to do so, it would be subscribing to the glitzy rah rah top-gun Hollywood-façade-style of reportage that the mainstream United States based media has become obsessed with…
The founding purpose of information sharing is to empower individuals to make informed choices. If publishing these images causes those who would otherwise send more to their deaths or support the killing of innocents to consider the true consequence of their decisions, then publishing is justified.
Today, Scoop's position remains the same.
ALSO Scoop Audio: Scoop's Selwyn Manning and 95bFM's Simon Pound discuss: the Scoop doco " Psy-Ops - The War On Your Opinions" and how NZ's intel agencies failed regarding Timor Leste.
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