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| Why they didn't print the cartoons | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Feb 11 2006, 10:48 PM (81 Views) | |
| SpookyTheCat | Feb 11 2006, 10:48 PM Post #1 |
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Why we didn't print the cartoons By PAUL BERTON, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Pssst! Here's a secret: Newspapers censor themselves every day. Excessive nudity. Gratuitous violence. Dead bodies. These things are usually banned in this newspaper. Why? Too many of our readers will complain, cancel their subscriptions or choose another medium if we persist. Many say the press has too much freedom, but you might be surprised by how much discretion we exercise. Anything we consider to be in bad taste or needlessly offensive gets tossed in the wastebasket. Sometimes, we know an image or an idea will offend some readers, but we print it anyway. The public's need to know something can outweigh its potential to offend; the eventual benefits can outweigh its initial costs. It may not seem that way, but one of our guiding principles is to try to be part of the solution, not part of the problem. Some people think the Holocaust can be a backdrop for humour. Not too many North American newspaper editors would agree. We shy away from images of swastikas if they represent Nazis and we even try to avoid the term Nazi unless it is specific to German history. We ignore hateful people saying hateful things unless they hold an important position in the community or unless they are making points we believe help create a better society. If we were presented with images that made fun of any religious figures, we would be wary indeed, because we know our readers are sensitive about such things. So why would we print cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad -- especially given what we now know about the likely reaction? We didn't. The Danish editor who printed the now-infamous cartoons did it believing he was encouraging a useful dialogue about freedom of expression and freedom of the press. He must have known he would inflame some of his audience, but if he had known it would be that offensive, create so much anger and lead to the violence and worldwide demonstrations we saw explode throughout the world in recent weeks, I expect he would have reconsidered. The editors in France and Germany and elsewhere (including the very few in Canada and the United States) who reprinted the cartoons recently believed they were taking an important stand for press freedom and solidarity. Others who published the cartoon decided the events in recent weeks were important enough that they needed to graphically explain to their readers exactly what all the fuss was about. Excellent arguments all and I am sympathetic to them. Meanwhile, those using violence to protest are hardly doing themselves or the religion a favour. But printing the cartoons now, given what we know about the reaction, is asking for trouble and is an invitation to violence. The question then becomes whether the printing of the cartoons makes the newspaper a part of the solution or part of the problem. Freedom of the press is an important part of democracy, but with that freedom comes responsibility. http://lfpress.ca/newsstand/News/Local/200...436605-sun.html NOTE: This is also why you haven't seen them on this site.---Nor will youPosted Image |
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7:14 PM Jul 10