Lecture 5: Secrecy and Privacy
Intruding on privacy is important to investigative journalism. Still,
there are important rules of privacy that journalists must adhere to.The world has become increasingly less private. The Internet and related
technologies have taken intrusion of privacy to new and dangerous levels.The government, financial institutions, police forces and others spy on
us constantly and gain access to private information without our knowledge or permission.Need for privacy: crucial for a person's personal development. Denial of
privacy is a dehumanizing technique used by certain cults to control people.Constitution's Bill of Rights limits the power of the state to control
the lives of its citizens. But the term "right to privacy" does not appear there.Rules governing privacy were worked out in the late 19th century. Laws
exist against the following practices: intrusion into an individual's residence or personal property, public disclosure of embarrassing private information for no constructive purpose, misleading publicity that places somebody in a false light, and misappropriation of a person's name or image.People in certain professions expect their privacy to be infringed upon:
politicians, actors. But those thrust accidentally into the spotlight deserve special consideration.Circles of intimacy (see illustration in course text).
Right to know, need to know, want to know.