Media ethics case study in the world of blogging

In August of 2011, blogger David Portnoy of the website, Barstool Sports, posted a controversial picture to his website that made many people question his morals and his ethics the picture was of New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady’s two year-old son, Benjamin. Paparazzi had shot pictures of Benjamin as he was playing on a beach in Costa Rica with his mother, Supermodel Gisel Bundchen. Portnoy found these pictures online and then posted one of them to his website. The picture he chose was a side profile shot of Benjamin with full nudity.

This was the picture Portnoy posted of Brady's son. The photo on the website was not blacked out as it is seen here.

Portnoy wrote the headline “Check out the howitzer on Brady’s son." Under the photo he went on to write, "That’s a big f***ing hog for a 2 year old right? Just swinging low like a boss. I guess we shouldn’t be surprised though. That’s what MVP QB’s do. They impregnate chicks and give birth to big d*cked kids. Does Peyton Manning have any children? If he does I bet they got pencil d*cks."

The combination of the photo and his comments sent many readers and the Boston Media into a frenzy. Barstool Sports is known for is dirty, locker-room type humor. It's become a very popular site, not just in Boston but across the country. Fans of Barstool read it for the edgy humor, but many people felt Portnoy crossed the line this time. I had a chance to speak with Ashley Blanchard, an occasional reader of Barstool Sports and she was not pleased with the picture or the comments made by Portnoy. She expressed sympathy for the child who was put in this situation. (a portion of our conversation can be heard here.)

Even arguably the most controversial media personality of all time Howard Stern expressed his disapproval as seen in this news report from WCVB channel 5 in Boston.

 

A video from a Headline News displays a report on this story. In the report, defense attorney B.J. Bernstein is interviewed.  In the interview she says, "the federal statute says, that sexual exploitation of a child includes the exposure of the genitalia of a child in a lascivious manner. Lascivious has a lengthy definition in the law, established by a test called the dost test. And you look at six different factors to determine whether that picture itself was something that's pornographic." 

B.J. went on to add, "the hard part here is, its the kinda picture where the child was out on the beach where everyone could see. So that alone isn't a sexual act. The issue becomes, and if he is prosecuted it may get put into new law, which is what he wrote underneath the photograph."

Portnoy was never prosecuted. However, Massachusetts State Police were sent to his house requesting that he remove the photo from his website. In a story first reported by Deadspin, Portnoy admitted that he felt no legal obligation to take the photo down. He had this to say in response to Deadspin's story on his own website.

"I didn’t want to turn this into a moral issue about whether the Cops had any right doing this and suppressing free speech and the first amendment and sh*t. That’s not my fight. At least not right now. And nobody was asking me where the pics went so I was just gonna let it die. Plus I didn’t want to look like a pus*y. But Deadspin asked the question and when somebody asks me a question I give an honest answer. Anyway I had no problem with the visit. They were friendly, non threatening and basically just said they were getting lots of complaints from the lunatic fringe (my words not theirs on lunatic fringe)and it would be in the best interest of everybody involved if I’d just take them down. I obviously still stand by the fact I had every right to do everything I did, but I’m not looking to make cops jobs more difficult than it already is so I complied."

 The out cry was so strong from the public that emergency phone lines were being jammed with complaints about Portnoy's posting of Brady's naked son. The police feared life and death 911 phone calls could not get through so they went to Portnoy's house and asked to take it down, going against his right for free speech and the first amendment.

Should this story be considered unethical the way its constructed? Is any naked child photographed considered porn? One of the most successful bands and album covers was Nirvana's Nevermind. The album cover featured a naked 3-month-old baby named Spencer Elden. It was produced and sold in record stores. In a book titled Come as You Are: The Story of Nirvana,  author Michael Azerrad asked Nirvana lead singer Kurt Kobain  about the risky nature of the album cover to which he replied, "If you're offended by this, you must be a closet pedophile."

Album cover for Nirvana's "Nevermind." 1991, DGC Records.

While Nirvana's album cover and the picture Barstool Sports posted were taken in differing context, parallels can be made between the appropriateness the two. The main issue seems to lie with the comments Portnoy made about the photo. Where do bloggers and paparazzi draw the line? Digital media allows for anyone with a computer to create a blogging website and post a seemingly innocent photo of a child playing on a beach and turn that photo into something more conniving by providing commentary underneath. Will bloggers ever be held to the ethical standards of news organizations and journalists or is this scenario something we will see more of in the future?

I asked Dan Weissman, a journalism professor at Rutgers University, what his thoughts were about this situation involving David Portnoy in this new media era.

“Gossip columns have much broader leeway. The photo was taken on a public beach. The disturbing thing is that the cops went to his house. I can see people getting upset. But, he’s a blogger. He has a website and he’s free to do what he wants,” Weisman said. “My personal view? I don’t think it was tasteful. But a lot of it isn’t tasteful, people need to lighten up.”

Weissman went on to talk discuss how the production of information has changed at not just blogging sites but news reporting organizations in general.

“The world has changed. It used to be you send something in and the editor looks at it. Now it’s writing fast and the editor looks at it after it’s out. The information is already out there. While you worry about ethical matters someone else is posting it.”