Legal And Ethical Considerations
In Media

Copyright
• Copyright is when somebody uses somebody
else's material without getting consent.
• Music,images,text or video can be some of the
material that people copyright.
• The pressure it puts on the media is that 1
producer is not allowed to use another
producers track unless they get permission or
be fined, if they go ahead and use.

Advantages & Disadvantages
Advantages: Disadvantages:
•Nobody can use your material
without asking.
•Can earn money off fining people
that use material without asking.
•People will not purchase your goods
because of the price.

Real Life Example: Copyright
• Jan 30th 2011 – ITunes breaks copyright as it
was allowing Russian films to be downloaded
to smart phones without the owners
permission.
• Apple took action as soon as they received a
complaint about the issue.

Libel
• Libel is defamation within written words or images.
• Libel is a civil offence which is to help protect the
reputation of a company or individual.
• The constraint could be o2 and t-mobile battling it out
for customers, o2 could publish a article saying that t-
mobile sells damaged handsets to customers which is
classed as defamation.

Advantages & Disadvantages
Advantages: Disadvantages:
•Could lose customers due to a
complaint.
•Get fined on un true information
•Action can be taken if the
news/information is lies.

Real Life Example: Libel
• Sept 12th 2013 – Madeleine McCann family
seeking £1m of damages from Portuguese
police chief has begun in London.
• Gonocalo Amaral wrote a book declaring that
McCann was dead and her parents had lied
about what happened.

Ethical Considerations- Legal
• Racial and religious hatred is classed as a
offence.
• People need to be careful when they are on
the phone making racial comments, as all can
be tracked and traced back to you.
• There should be no exceptions for ANY sign of
racial/religious/gender abuse.

Advantages & Disadvantages - Legal
Advantages: Disadvantages:
•Charges for claims of any sign of
abuse.
•Jail sentences for offenders.
•Could get fined for racism if wrong
words are used.

Ethical Considerations -
Representation
• Ethical constraint(represent) is aiming something
for the type of person you are.
• In the media they have the responsibility to
represent all of the groups of people (sexual
orientation,belief,disability and gender.)
• Media pressure will very hard as you will need to
be very careful as to how you get things across to
people.

Real Life Example – Ethical
• Sept 5th 2011 – Doctors from Birmingham and
Manchester have been accused of offering
abortions based on gender on unborn child.
• Is that right or wrong..?

Privacy
• Privacy is a respect to give you the right for a private life for
you and your family.
• Privacy can be anything from not having visitors to the house
when a relative/friend is there or not wanting paparazzi in the
arena where you are performing.
• Media pressure is again very hard on this topic, if you are in
the public eye all of the time you just have NO privacy what
so ever.

Advantages & Disadvantages - Privacy
Advantages: Disadvantages:
•Good Press.
•Boost a artist/actor or dancer’s
publicity.
•Post photos and articles they are
allowed to.
•Cant print or post pictures that
they want.
•Artist or a person in public eye
can seek legal advice.

Real Life Example - Privacy
• Feb 2009 – Chris Brown arrested after alleged Rihanna
assault.
• Once the press had got a hold of them pictures of Rihanna’s
face as to what he had done that was it, they were all over.
• That girl had NO privacy over what he had done to her and
she couldn't do anything about it as the press have so much
authority.