A news report was published in the center of the first page of Abwab supplement in Al Rai newspaper on Tuesday, 24 February 2015, telling the story of two orphaned children, along with a colored photograph of them. The story is told within the context of highlighting a state of human weakness, associated with poverty and unemployment. This episode reveals the weak ethical treatment of subjects pertaining to childhood in some media outlets.  

The news report had been disseminated by the Jordan News Agency (Petra), along with the photograph, on Monday, 23 January 2015. Despite the mistake committed by Petra, the newspaper did not notice this ethical violation, which has to do with publishing pictures of children. This is part of numerous ethical issues associated with protecting children from abuse and avoiding the use of descriptions that would affect them within the environment they live in.

The Jordanian Media Credibility Monitor "AKEED" underlines the professional and ethical standards, according to which the publishing of this picture does not serve public interest at all and does not provide news value. In this context, the Monitor also recalls the professional and ethical practices that are followed when covering news related to children, especially publishing their pictures. 

AKEED issued a report early this month under the headline "Do Newspapers Violate Privacy of the Poor and Put Them to Shame?" The report highlighted the way the press handles issues of the poor. It also shed light on ethical and international standards in handling issues pertaining to publishing news about children. 

The Press and Publications Law stipulates "respecting public freedoms of others, preserving their rights, and not infringing on the sanctity of their private life." This sanctity includes those under the guardianship of parents, such as children and people with disabilities.

The Jordanian Press Honor Code stipulates that "journalists shall commit to respecting the reputation of households, families, and individuals and the confidentiality of matters that pertain to citizens in line with international principles, the ethics of journalistic work, and effective laws in the Kingdom." 

According to Article 14 of the Code, journalists shall commit to "defending issues of childhood and their fundamental rights of care and protection. They shall refrain from interviewing children or taking their pictures without the consent of their parents or guardians. Also, it shall not be permissible to publish anything that offends them or their families, particularly in cases of sexual abuse, whether they are victims or witnesses." 

Going back to local ethical principles and those observed worldwide, UNICEF has developed a set of ethical principles that are to be observed when reporting on children, most important of which is that the dignity of all children is to be respected under all circumstances. When interviewing and reporting on children, special attention is needed to ensure each child"s right to privacy and confidentiality, to have their opinions heard, to participate in decisions affecting them and to be protected from harm and retribution, including the potential of harm and retribution.

The guidelines of UNICEF stress that the best interests of each child are to be protected over any other consideration, including over advocacy for children"s issues and the promotion of child rights. When trying to determine the best interests of a child, the child"s right to have their views taken into account is to be given due weight in accordance with their age and maturity.

According to the guidelines, those closest to the child"s situation and best able to assess it are to be consulted about the political, social and cultural ramifications of any reportage.  Do not publish a story or an image which might put the child, siblings or peers at risk even when identities are changed, obscured or not used.

In this context, the AKEED Monitor stresses that publishing the pictures of children in the media must serve to achieve their interests and must be with the consent of their parents. Meanwhile, pictures of children must not be published if they are poor or suffer a state of disability and significant human weakness to protect them and not expose them to psychological harm and not let them be stigmatized by their community. This also includes children who are accused of crimes or who are a party to a case, whether they are witnesses or complainants, in order to safeguard them and their future. Besides, it is impermissible to publish the pictures of children in the event of being abused or exploited in the labor market or if they are engaged in begging. If there is any interest in publishing, their faces must be obscured and any features that suggest their identity must be concealed.