Re:Julian Assange charged in superseding indictment
by stale2002 on Saturday June 27, 2020 @03:17AM
(#23660081)
> To me it seems to be a binary
It doesn't have to be binary. Instead, we can say that the more power someone has, the more it is ok to reveal info about them.
You can pick public figure, but I wouldn't do that.
> Who exactly is allowed to do the calculus
Anyone at all times. That's how society works. Everyone has their own opinions.
I don't agree with your binary opinion though.
> Of a CEO
CEOs have lots of power. They don't need to be protected as much as everyone else in the world.
I agree that Steve Jobs is more powerful than even an influential blogger, but they are both public figures. Who exactly is allowed to do the calculus about how much private information is appropriate to publish about someone according to their level of power? To me it seems to be a binary: are they a public figure or not.
When it's a breach of journalistic ethics to publish information about a blogger that's provided on or linked to from said blog (I think it is a breach, he made a specific request not to) it's much more egregious to publish an apparently forged health record of a CEO.
At no point do I think that not caring about someone's privacy means it's acceptable to publish false information about them.