Viewing Thread:
"Public Interest"

So the news has been filled with the story of channel 4 going ahead with showing pictures of the crash that took the lives of Diana and Dodi Al Fayed. Despite protests from Diana's children, channel 4 have decided to show the pictures as they claim there is a general public interest in it.

The documentary shows images of the crash that happened almost 10 years ago. Although the actual images of those involved have been removed but I'd imagine you could work out what's been removed from the pictures.

For me this story just shows the state of journalism/news in this country. We have photographers following any kind of celeb looking to catch them doing something out of character - be it fighting, drinking or falling out of their dress. A sad state when pictures of people dying in a nasty accident become 'entertainment'.

To me it seems that channel 4 are using all this as a bit more publicity for the documentary. I'd imagine the whole documentary will be quite lame compared to the amount of press that it is currently getting. It's the public interest part that gets to me.

Is anyone actually interested in seeing the images?

I know Diana was a high profile public figure, but does anyone really think that her death still deserves to be reported on like this so after her death? Preserving her memory is fine with me but I'd quite happily see the majority of news about her laid to rest.

Are the general public really that nosey that they'll lap up this documentary and want to see similar stuff? (the amount of crappy celeb mags out there tells me this could be quite true)
So who wants to see these images? and why?

I didn't watch the programme, but all the criticism of Channel 4 showing photographs of a dying Diana strikes me as over-sensitive.
Think about the footage of JFK having half of his head blown off, I mean, it's not perverted or overly voyeuristic to want to see how such an iconic figure of the 20th century died. In fact, it's quite natural. It's the same with Diana really.
Perhaps the real criticism should be aimed not at the showing of a few photographs but at the people still making millions exploiting Diana. I'm thinking of all the books full of gossip and rumour dressed up as something important.

Ladybird wrote:
> Well, there you have it.

What I wrote: a mere sardonic jape.

I didn't watch it and had no desire to either.

It's just Channel 4 trying to get viewers and I don't think it should have been shown.

That's a fair point; they have no real power, and indeed seem to just be there as either a) Ambassadors of a sort, b) Food for the press, or c) To make people think "Whoa", at all the grandeur. And the tax burden of their upkeep is much lower than that of the military, NHS et cetera; still, they're not the most neccessary of institutions.

I was watching Sky News on... Friday? There was a Conservative MP on the show reviewing the next day headlines, and I think the Daily Mail or the Express was printing a Diana headline; he basically said that it was all wholly unneccessary, and all it does is give them a 5% sales boost every now and then by printing such twaddle, and at the same time undermine their credibility.

I watched it, and I'm still scarred by the grainy, underexposed black & white photo of Di at death's door. Typical Channel 4 hype. The photos shouldn't be shown and, shock-horror, they weren't shown. Cyclone in a coffee cup.

Still, if the Royals want to crown British society and continue to leech off the populus, then they shouldn't be surprised if there is over-interest in every aspect of their lives (and deaths).

I think it was all hype really. I doubt the ratings were what they anticipated. I don't know of one person that cared to watch.

Out of interest did anyone actually watch it?

I didn't - just wondered if there was actually a point to the documentary or if it was the same old story as always.

The funfair closed on the day she died. That really p****d me off.

Sarrasine wrote:
> - So who wants to see these images?
> I do.
> - and why?
> Oh, nothing more than morbid voyeurism. I'd like to see all the
> Royals dead.

Well, there you have it.

Personally, I don't care to see the pictures. I genuinely admired the gal for her humanity and altruism, which made her more valuable to the commoner than any of those Royals put together. She's gone now.. a misfortune for us all. Sometimes I wonder if Prince Charles had her taken out, but whatever.. With all the grief the world endured in her passing, I just as well consider the incident to have been an accident caused by a drunken chauffer and let her rest in peace.

Even in her short time here with us, she truly made a difference in our lives with her stature, opening our eyes to the suffering of people in less fortunate countries and to grave causes that needed our immediate attention. She inspired others seek out to help others too.

I believe the majority of people are asking why these pictures would surface now and leaning more towards all of it to be just another publicity stunt. It's just shameful and disrespectful to her memory, because being the focus of the public eye is not all Diana was about. It would be more respectable to concentrate on publicising her work.

- So who wants to see these images?
I do.
- and why?
Oh, nothing more than morbid voyeurism. I'd like to see all the Royals dead.