Reporting Human Rights

Reporting Human Rights provides a systematic examination of human rights news and reporting practices from inside the world of television news production.

Reporting Human Rights provides a systematic examination of human rights news and reporting practices from inside the world of television news production. From an interdisciplinary perspective, the book discusses the potential of journalism in contributing to human rights protection, awareness and debate, in ignoring, silencing or misrepresenting human rights issues around the world or, in extreme situations, in inciting hatred, genocide and crimes against humanity. It provides insight into how journalists translate human rights issues, revealing different reporting patterns and levels of detail in reporting, and suggesting different levels of engagement with human rights problems. The book explains the most important factors that encourage or limit the coverage of human rights news. Grounded in a close examination of the news production processes and key moments where possible human rights stories are contemplated, decided or eventually ignored, the book opens up new insights into the complexities and constraints of human rights reporting today.

Autorentext

Susana Sampaio-Dias (Ph.D., Cardiff University) is Lecturer in Journalism at the University of Portsmouth. She has also worked as a broadcast journalist and news producer for RTP, the Portuguese public service broadcaster.

Klappentext

Reporting Human Rights provides a systematic examination of human rights news and reporting practices from inside the world of television news production. From an interdisciplinary perspective, the book discusses the potential of journalism in contributing to human rights protection, awareness and debate, in ignoring, silencing or misrepresenting human rights issues around the world or, in extreme situations, in inciting hatred, genocide and crimes against humanity. It provides insight into how journalists translate human rights issues, revealing different reporting patterns and levels of detail in reporting, and suggesting different levels of engagement with human rights problems. The book explains the most important factors that encourage or limit the coverage of human rights news. Grounded in a close examination of the news production processes and key moments where possible human rights stories are contemplated, decided or eventually ignored, the book opens up new insights into the complexities and constraints of human rights reporting today.

Inhalt

Acknowledgments - Introduction - A Brief History and Definition of Human Rights - Human Rights and Journalism: The High Road or the Road to Nowhere? - Human Rights and News Production Processes - Representation of Human Rights in the News - Covering Human Rights: Newsroom Routines and Decision Making - Journalists' Understandings of Human Rights in the News - Conclusions - Bibliography - Index