Is a Georgian Life Worth Less than a North American Life?
A Question CTV and NBC Need to Answer
By Paul D. Boin (Jan. 28, 2009) A Blog for Media Justice
Jointly sponsored by the Media Justice Project & Rabble)
As millions of Canadians and Americans (and others worldwide) sat down last night to watch the opening ceremonies of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games, CTV and NBC seem to have made a barbaric and Machiavellian ratings decision to broadcast the Olympic equivalent of a snuff-film.
While CTV and NBC have made attempts to justify their decision, one really needs to wonder (little) if the nationality of Nodar Kumaritashvili had been Canadian or American, would the network executives have made a different decision.
It’s no secret that due to the economic recession CTV/Rogers and NBC stand to lose money on their securing of their respective Canadian and American broadcasting rights to the Vancouver Olympics as adverstising dollars are not projected to be enough to recover their initial investement. CTV made an executive decision to not only broadcast the death of Kumaritashvili on their prime-time opening show but also release their footage to other networks, while making it available for viewing on their website. NBC also decided to broadcast this death video to their American audience.
CTVglobemedia’s VP of corporate communications, Bonnie Brownlee, felt that CTV’s decision to broadcast the death of luger Kumaritashvili was “proper” and, according to a Vancouver Sun report (an outlet that decided to not feature the video on their website), Brownlee stated “After much consideration we decided to make available the images of Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili’s run.”
Imagine, God forbid, if it had been Canadian sledding medal hopefuls Melissa Hollingsworth or Pierre Lueders, or American ‘Flying Tomato’ Shawn White or downhill skier Lindsey Vonn. Would CTV and NBC have decided to broadcaster their moments death? I think not.
While these are difficult questions, these are the questions that CTV and NBC should be made to answer (not rewarded) for their beyond callous decisions.
[On another matter: As to VANOC and the International Luge Federation (the groups responsible for the design and sanctioning of the sledding course, and today, the reopening of the course with a modest raising of the wall in the corner in question), why haven’t their technicians and engineers figured out, what many lay men and lay women have already, that they need to cover the area above the wall, with a protective additional wall of Plexiglas or even plywood, so that a sledder who jumps the wall would continue to bounce forward, not simply be stopped dead in their tracks from impacting a pillar at 140kms plus. VANOC and the ILF should consider themselves forewarned, and therefore responsible for any future injuries or deaths.]
Dr. Paul Boin (pboin@uwindsor.ca) is an assistant professor of media studies at the University of Windsor, founder of the Media Justice Project and is the research coordinator for the Haiti Media Research Project (If you’re interested in becoming involved in this media research project contact pboin@uwindsor.ca). His forthcoming book “Media for the Public Mind: Creating a Democratic and Informative News Media” will be published by Fernwood Publishing in the Fall of 2010.
February 13th, 2010 at 4:16 pm Look, you politically correct professor- I am a Canadian. A young man has died in my country. I feel responsible. I am angry that the luge course did not protect this athlete; and, I am ashamed that this is in my country. There have been complaints by Canadian lugers that this track is dangerous, and these complaints were ignored. I realize that there are thrill seekers who derive sick satisfaction from this death. And this gratuitous viewing should be curtailed-I agree with you. But, I do disagree that it should be hushed up and ignored, because that is what you are advocating (like it or not). We are hosting the Olympics and we contributed to the death of a young athlete through our negligence. I am aware of this because I saw the footage. So, do we derive a “machiavelian” pleasure in seeing this tragic accident?…I do agree, some do. But, I feel that my country was responsible for this atrocity through its negligence, and I could only realize this by seeing what happened (and, thus ironically, to do justice to what happened). We should be ashamed—the fasted track in the world and no safety precautions.
February 13th, 2010 at 4:25 pm The point of my blog entry was to point out the hypocrisy of network television decisions. I stand by my view that if the nationality of the luger had been Canadian or American, CTV and NBC would have likely not aired the death footage, as these same networks have often done when they decide to not broadcast similar images of Canadian and American soldiers dying in Afghanistan or Iraq, or innocent civilians in said countries. Show all or show none. But don’t dehumanize some, and humanize others.
February 13th, 2010 at 4:37 pm I saw the footage within 6 hours of the death, and not since. Maybe there would have been a little more sensitivity at the administrative level if the athlete had been North American. But, you have already eloquently described the networks’ reptilian reaction to a tragedy…ANY tragedy. North American or not, they would have showed it while they could. And, then pulled it when propriety dictated so (or, more probably Vanoc). It does not matter the nationality of the athlete. Our yellow journalists would have shown the footage for as long as they could have gotten away with it, and then pulled it when it looked improper (as they did). I have no faith in Canadian journalism. We do not stand on principle. I would be proud if we showed the footage to make a point that the IOC has been negligent. And, I would also have been proud if we had withheld the footage on the ground that it is too traumatic to be seen. Either way, I want Canadian journalists to take a stance. But, what they have done is yellow cowardly—showing the footage while they could get away with it and then bowing down to polite observation. Again, I am ashamed to be Canadian (and, that is sad because I love my country—usually).