The Media’s Effect on Human Suffering Essay Example

Every day people are scrolling through social media and many will discover a photo of people living in third world countries. They are suffering from starvation and their bones are visible through their skin. It’s so horrifically appealing and impossible to look away from. The question of “why was this ever posted?” is often asked and there is an ethical explanation behind this. The 2019-2020 National High School Ethics Bowl case “Bearing Witness, Bringing Change, or Trauma Porn?” discusses the moral pros and cons to creating, publishing, viewing and sharing of photos of peoples suffering. An example comes from 2019, when photos from a prison in Alabama were sent to The New York Times. All of these photos depicted human suffering inside the prison ranging from terrible living conditions to death. They later published an article showcasing these images. Those supporting the printing of these images for the public believe that the sight of them can inform those in the dark, as well as make them want to help. Some even claim that it creates a moral obligation to help those being pictured. Others disagree with the publishing of these photos, believing the images can harm the victims or that they should not have their pain used to bring in attention from the public. They can even be seen as a form of entertainment instead of a call to action. Is it morally wrong to create, share or view a photo of another person’s suffering? Yes, it is unethical to create, publish, view or share images of tragedy and suffering. When doing this one should consider the ethical standpoints of beneficence, integrity and justice.

Those who value beneficence should be considering how they can help improve the well-being of those individuals being photographed. When faced with images of suffering there is always a choice to be made: “Do I want to help?” Individuals allowing themselves to be photographed in these horrific states usually want the answer from everyone to be a yes.. In the article “How Should We Respond to Photographs of Suffering” the Sarah Sentilles and Mimi Swartz reference a book written by Ariella Azulay who argues “Photographers and people who have let themselves be photographed assume that someday people will see their images and do something in response to what they see,” (Sentilles and Swartz). Another example that the authors use is the photography of African Americans, who were to be sold as slaves. As the subjects were being forced to strip their clothes, be harassed by the buyers and sellers so they could be photographed, some form of good came out of it. The authors write “Rather than documenting the sub-humanity of the enslaved, the images document the inhumanity of the owners” (Sentilles and Swartz). A benefit came from these photos. The viewer now is able to see how terrible these slave traders and how they treat the subjects in the image. This causes people to push for action to help those who are suffering in situations similar to the photograph. When using the photos, the goal should be to reach the public and inspire them to take action and attempt to fix what’s wrong for the general welfare of the subjects. The ethical principle of beneficence encourages love and well being for all, pushing for action to arise out of the use of these photos. People need to consider beneficence when seeing images of suffering because of their concern for the health of the subjects. 

One with integrity will live a life with honesty, fairness and decency while trying to avoid hypocrisy and corruption. In 2015, the death of 3 year old Alan Kurdi and his family who drowned in the Mediterranean Sea trying to leave Turkey after being denied asylum by Canada shocked the world. Canada had recently adopted anti-immigrant policies and the Kurdi family suffered (Walsh and TIME). The image of Alan, dead on the beach was circulating through the internet. A horrific sight that no one could look away from, like some sort of trauma porn. Viewing images like these with no intent to bring change to the matter is unethical because of the lack of integrity being shown. Megan MacKenzie, a passionate progressivist wrote “I would rather people- quite frankly- do nothing, than circulate an image or share a story of Alyan or any asylum seeker for their own personal gratification” (MacKenzie). This relates to integrity because it is unfair for someone to use images of someone else’s suffering to make themselves feel better about themselves. While the quote does not directly relate to people’s suffering it applies nonetheless. Sharing one’s suffering with no intent to help is in a way worse than not doing anything at all. This is also a form of hypocrisy, which is something that a person living a life of integrity would not involve themselves with.  Overall, a person of integrity would not view photos of people suffering and try to share it for their own personal gain. Instead, they would either do nothing or actually try to benefit those in need. 

Justice typically relates to fairness and a common phrase regarding fairness is “treat others how you would like to be treated.” While it may not apply directly to helping people in pain it definitely correlates. If someone photographed had the ability to take action from the outside after seeing what happens they would do what they are capable of doing to help. In another reference to Azulay’s work Sentilles notes, “‘Photography reorganized what was accessible to the gaze,’ Azulay writes. It gave people the chance to share their visual field with one another, to see more than they could see alone, to be in otherwise unreachable times and places’ (Sentilles and Swartz). With a new perspective and expanded view on the lives of other people there should be more effort put into helping those suffering by just citizens. After all, it's only fair to help people in need. Justice is another key ethical principle to be considered during the creation, publishing, sharing and viewing of images of suffering.  

On the contrary one could argue that these photos should not be shared in the first place due to violation of privacy and the excessive gore. In 2019 a collection of thousands of leaked photos from a prison in Alabama depicting death and injury to inmates. New York Times Magazine wanted to publish many of these photos and share them to the public but eventually decided not to and only published five of the less extreme images. “‘After considering the inmates’ privacy, audience sensibilities, and our inability to provide more context for the specific incidents depicted,’ the article says, ‘the Times determined that few of these photos could be published’” (Exstrum). While the decision is understandable, it is morally wrong to not show the public the full story of what happens behind the prison walls and have the stories of the abused be left unknown. It is unfair to these stories to not be heard. To put it simply, when approached by these stories or images in someone’s life it is a moral obligation for them to share all of the details that they could, sparing none of the horrific details. 

In conclusion, when viewing another person's trauma and pain, the viewer has an ethical obligation to make some sort of action to help. Ethical principles supporting this include beneficence because of the desire for the well-being of others, integrity because of the honest, non hypocritical lifestyle, and justice in search of fairness. While many argue that images of extreme cruelty should be hidden from the public eye. It is still necessary to share the entire story to the public. When seeing a disturbing image on the internet trying to achieve this don’t just scroll past it mindlessly, step up. Take action and do your best to help. 

Works Cited

Addington, Dustyn, et al. “Bearing Witness, Bringing Change, or Trauma Porn?” National High School Ethics Bowl, 2019-2020, Regional Cases, UNC Parr Center for Ethics, https://nhseb.unc.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/2427/2019/09/Regional-Case-Set-2019-2020.pdf

Exstrum, Olivia. “2,000 Leaked Photos Show the Cruelty of an Alabama Prison. Should They Be Published?” Mother Jones, 19 Apr. 2019, www.motherjones.com/crime-justice/2019/04/2000-leaked-photos-show-the-cruelty-of-an-alabama-prison-should-they-be-published/ 

MacKenzie, Megan. “Image Voyeurism, Trauma Porn, and 'Doing Something'...for Yourself.” The Duck of Minerva, 11 Sept. 2015, https://www.duckofminerva.com/2015/09/image-voyeurism-trauma-porn-and-doing-something-for-yourself.html. 

Sentilles, Sarah, and Swartz, Mimi. “How We Should Respond to Photographs of Suffering.” The New Yorker, 3 Aug. 2017, https://www.newyorker.com/books/second-read/how-we-should-respond-to-photographs-of-suffering/amp.

Walsh, Bryan, and TIME Photo. “Drowned Syrian Boy Alan Kurdi's Story: Behind the Photo.” Time, Time, 29 Dec. 2015, https://time.com/4162306/alan-kurdi-syria-drowned-boy-refugee-crisis/?amp=true.