A new report demands a ban on contacting the seriously injured and publishing photos of attackers, highlighting intrusive media behavior.
Survivors of terrorist attacks are calling on media outlets to adopt new guidelines for reporting on such incidents. Their demands, outlined in the “Survivors Against Terror” report, include not contacting seriously injured victims or bereaved families for at least two days and halting the publication of attackers’ photos.
The report, contributed to by individuals like the widower of murdered MP Jo Cox and relatives of victims from the Manchester Arena and Fishmonger’s Hall attacks, urges media to minimize the naming of terrorists, suppress their manifestos, and avoid detailed accounts of their methods or the harm they cause.
Editors are also urged not to publish images of victims or injured individuals without the consent of their families. The report advocates for the creation of a “survivors support hub” to offer independent information and exclude media that breach these guidelines from press events.
Drawing from a survey of 116 survivors, the report sheds light on the widespread issue of media intrusion, with 59% of respondents experiencing harassment, often within 48 hours of the attack.
