Japan Media Review Update: September 2, 2003

JMR Staff (Annenberg School for Communication, University of Southern California)

Camera Phones Changing the Definition of Picture-Worthy
Unlike the traditional camera, the camera phone is an intimate and ubiquitous presence that invites a new kind of personal awareness, a persistent alertness to the visually newsworthy that makes amateur photojournalists out of its users. By Mizuko Ito and Okabe Daisuke.
http://www.ojr.org/japan/wireless/1062208524.php

The above piece and other related materials are found in Japan Media Review (www.JapanMediaReview.com).

BRIEFS

The following briefs are posted at: http://64.87.25.234/ojc/topics/index.php?tID=40

Newspapers act to protect privacy in electronic era
2003-08-28 13:00:31
From Pressnet: The protection of privacy and human rights has become a major issue for media outlets that provide databases for news articles and Internet-related services. According to the January 2003 NSK annual survey on electronic and broadcasting media by newspapers and news agencies, 32 news organizations offer databases of their articles, photographs and page image. Calls for increased privacy protection has risen as public access to restored articles on the Web and database retrieval services become easier and more common. Yet, as the article explains, media organizations cannot merely revise or delete old articles, due to the social function of the media and the value of the databases. Some companies set guidelines for revising and deleting articles. For instance, The Yomiuri Shimbun, one of the largest newspapers with a paid database retrieval service, and a popular Web site called Daily Yomiuri Online, formed the Electronic Media Grievance Committee in January 2002. The committee introduced guidelines to protect personal information in its "Database for Paid Services" and "Internet-Related Services," which allows for article deletion. The committee will also handle any requests for the deletion of articles. It is already thinking about deleting articles about minor mishaps and criminal cases automatically. (perma-link to this brief)
- Keiko Mori, Japan Media Review Staff Writer