Should the media have a greater sense of social responsibility?

This is designed for UK users, but i guess it applies all around. What are your views? What about events like the Mohammed cartoons?

Should the media have a greater sense of social responsibility?
Absolutely. They take the responsibility for informing us, so they should be responsible for any lack of information or wrong information.
Reply:Hats off to your question. Obviously there is a need for people in the industry, particularly the media, to have a great sense of social responsibility.





Media people, whether they like it or not, are dispensers of information, entertainments, opinions and what have you that affect, redirect, and influence the thinking and feeling of other people - the audience, receivers, readers. I had an acquaintance before who used to ask many of his friends this question: "If you see a beautiful woman enter into your room naked will you not be aroused?" That pointblank question alone, even if not peppered with other superlatives or supplemented with other audio-visual elements, could most likely send men into tailspin. How much more if we have wayward media people, who adhere to art for art's sake philosophy, be given the full freedom to unravel their basic instincts? The world would surely become a shifting sand of moral decline.





However, we may seem to be sour grapers or just asking for the moon in silver platter if we cringe and complain why the hell many of these media people are becoming wayward.





Beyond your question therefore, we need also to proact and do some campaigning in our little own way. Now, if you are really that passionate about that issue, then it would be better if you form your own society to campaign against what you think is subliminal, obscene, lewd and whatever are crass.





If you can help at least one media soul become responsible, then that would be good. At least there would be one less lunatic, pugnacious, neurotic media soul on earth.





Needless to say, I am doing my share.