Media Law and Ethics of Bill Cosby Rape Allegations
By Karine Cox
Over the past several months the media has been blowing up with articles about comedian Bill Cosby’s rape allegations. This information is not new to media sources, as originally back in 2005 the rape allegations against Bill Cosby began. These rape allegations were not on the forefront for the media until 2014 when stand-up comedian “Hannibal Buress called Bill Cosby a rapist on stage” (Lusk, 2015). Since then, this news has spread like wildfire over the media and more people have come forward and spoken out about being “raped, sexually assaulted or drugged by Bill Cosby” (Kovaleski, 2014). The legendary comedian Bill Cosby’s reputation has taken a complete turn where he has gone from being one of the most liked comedians to now one of the most talked about, despised comedian on social media and in the news. It is not ethical work of journalists to publish information that has not been proven factual or confirmed true especially when the information can be defamatory. The Society of Professional Journalists’ Code of Ethics requires journalists to “seek truth and report it,” to “minimize harm,” and to remember that “neither speed nor format excuses inaccuracy” (SPJ, 2014).
This is an image of rape guide, to differentiate what is considered rape vs. consensual sex:
In 2005, the Bill Cosby rape allegations began when Andrea Constand, a past staffer for Temple University’s basketball team, came forward, claiming Cosby drugged and assaulted her a year before at his house in suburban Philadelphia.
“Ms. Constand did not press charges due to lack of evidence on her end. She did file a civil law suit in 2006 against Bill Cosby but it settled outside the court. Also in 2005, another woman Tamara Green claimed Bill Cosby assaulted her. Bill Cosby denied these allegations” (Lusk, 2015).
The Uproar of the Bill Cosby Rape Allegations
Fast-forward to 2014 where comedian Hannibal Buress called Bill Cosby a rapist on stage at a stand-up show. A video of this was captured and went viral on the Internet, since then it has become one of the most talked about topics to hit the media. “To date, over two dozen women have come forward publicly with allegations against Bill Cosby” (Kovaleski, 2014). Of all the women who came forward, Judy Huth, a Southern California woman claims that Bill Cosby molested her in a bedroom of the Playboy Mansion at the age of 15. She is the first woman who claimed she was underage when she was abused. The Bill Cosby rape allegation is currently ongoing in the media as there is always a new accuser. This situation went viral in the media because of Cosby’s prestigious career; a legendary and a father of comedy.
This video shows one of the victims, Barbara Brown speaking out about what she remember of the night she was allegedly drugged and how she feels about this situations:
These rape allegations have taken a complete turn on Bill Cosby’s career, stand-up shows, TV shows and his honorary status in many universities. Many of Bill Cosby’s TV shows will no longer be aired. According to Lusk (2015), “Netflix has postponed the launch of Bill Cosby’s new stand-up special. NBC pulls the plug on their in-the-works sitcom starring Cosby, saying the show is no longer under development. TV Land will no longer be showing ‘The Cosby Show’ re-runs.” As more women come forward, more of Bill Cosby’s shows are being cancelled on air. These allegations have also caused Cosby to resign as a trustee of Temple University. Cosby had the title of an honorary chief petty officer in the Navy but since these allegations his title has been revoked. Cosby also had an endowed professorship with Spelman College which recently got suspended due to the rape allegations.
However, these rape allegations have not been proven and Cosby has not been found guilty. Mr. Cosby has not spoken much on the matter nor has he sued anyone for defamation. Thus, this situation raises the arguments of whether the media allowed to publish articles that are not 100 percent factual. It also brings forth an argument of whether an article can be published based on the words of the accuser with no other evidence. It further raises thoughts about the ethical practice of the media. Cosby’s wife places fault with the media on how they handled this situation. “There appears to be no vetting of my husband’s accusers before stories are published or aired. An accusation is published and immediately goes viral” (Kovaleski, 2014). The work of the media in publishing stories before fact checking is considered unethical.
In this video, Bill Cosby speaks out on the rape allegations in an interview with the Associated Press:
Ethical Framework
Furthermore, in a situation like this it can be considered defamatory and libelous. In an article on CNN, Mark Whitaker, a former CNN editor, stated, “there were no definitive court findings. If I just did a she-said-he said, and I printed allegations and denials without my own independent reporting, every person who then reviewed it would be free to repeat those unconfirmed allegations. (Leopold & Brumfield, 2014). A journalist should know the codes of ethic to live by when it comes to doing his or her job. According to the SPJ Code of Ethic (2014), “Journalists should remember that neither speed nor format excuses inaccuracy.” This is a key principle journalists should have noted before reporting unconfirmed allegations. Journalists should have gotten both sides of the story before reporting.
Defamation
The Law of Journalism and Mass Communication defines defamation as “a false communication that harms another person’s reputation and subjects him or her to ridicule and scorn” (Trager, Russomanno, Ross & Reynolds, 58). Libel is damage to someone’s reputation with published false information. Libel laws are about “protecting reputation and serve to check the power of the media by opening its news gathering and decision making processes to public scrutiny and accountability” (Trager, Russomanno, Ross & Reynolds, 150). This shows that the work of the media is libelous and defamatory as these statements subject Bill Cosby to scorn and harms his reputation. With Bill Cosby being a public figure, it becomes harder for him to prove actual malice. This is because a public figure has surrendered certain expectations of privacy.
This is an image depicting that the media is still a weapon for freedom, however, with that, the reporters should always bear in mind the Code of ethics when publishing information.
Privacy Tort: False Light
Furthermore, this situation leads to what we call “false light”, which is one of the four privacy torts. One may argue that the First Amendment gives one the right to free speech and press but the controversy comes about because the protection from privacy infringement comes from the Third, Fourth, and Fifth Amendment. False light is defined as “recklessly publishing false information a reasonable person would find highly offensive” (Trager, Russomanno, Ross & Reynolds, 238). False light also includes making a person seem to be something he or she is not, in the public eye. This seems to be the case in this situation because the rape allegation has not been finalized by the courts.
Statute of Limitation in Rape
In any rape case or allegations, a key factor to consider when filing a claim is the statute of limitation. In general terms, statute of limitations is “a time limit in which a person has to file a claim. In a criminal context, a statute of limitations is the time limit in which the prosecutor must file charges” (US Official News, 2015). States have established a statute of limitation for various reasons. Such may exist because “it would be tough to prosecute a case after a certain period of time passes due to evidence being lost or a witness may be dead or moved” (US Official News, 2015). States that have a statute of limitations for rape, their time period varies, between three to thirty years is common.
Many of the women who have filed a lawsuit for the rape allegations stated that their incident happened in the 1970s, which is over 30 years ago. The argument which lies, is whether or not these cases be valid if the statute of limitations on these cases ran out. Those cases can be thrown out because they have not met the statute of limitations for rape. Chole Goins, one of the women who has alleged that Bill Cosby drugged and sexually assaulted has filed a lawsuit against him. She claims to have been drugged and sexually assaulted in 2008. According to McDonald (2015), “Unlike other accusations made by more than 20 women, Goins’ stands out because it may fall within the six-year statute of limitations for sexual assault in California. Goins is determined to put Mr. Cosby behind bars.”
Similar Rape Allegation Cases
In researching cases similar to the Bill Cosby case, I found the issue of rape being common during the 1990s amongst celebrities. Celebrities such as R. Kelly, Mike Tyson, Woody Allen, Michael Jackson, CeeLo Green and other celebrities have been accused of some sort of rape cases in their past. However, for those who were found guilty, their punishment varied. This is because each state law on rape varies. For example, in the Mike Tyson case, he was found guilty and sentenced to jail for six years but luckily was released after serving three years. In the case of R. Kelly though he wasn’t proven guilty, to date, “these alleged sex crimes are still horrific and it has still caused him to be frowned upon by the public” (McGovern, 2013). Or just like Michael Jackson who was accused of raping little boys. Such allegations whether true or false, can tarnish one’s reputation for the rest of his or her life. When it comes to someone’s reputation, SPJ Code of Ethic states ‘Minimize Harm’ as one of the four principles as a foundation for ethical journalism. “Ethical journalism treats sources, subjects, colleagues and members of the public as human beings deserving of respect. Journalists should balance the public’s need for information against potential harm or discomfort” SPJ Code of Ethic (2014).
Conclusion
In conclusion, in the case of Bill Cosby no one knows what the consequences may be because he has not been proven guilty. However, for now these allegations are continuing to ruin his reputation, caused his TV shows to be cancelled and he has lost all his honorary statuses. His case is a little more interesting because over 20 victims have come forward and those who claimed to have been raped, it happened about 30 years ago. Rape cases are to be handled carefully. It is not often rape victims speak out on such issues, but when they do it is best to have all the correct information before writing an article. It is wise to wait to publish factual information than to quickly publish non-factual information. This has also defamed Cosby’s character and he has a right to sue the media for publishing statements that have not been proven true.
This work by Karine Cox is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
References
Brumfield, B. & Leopold, T. (2014). Rape allegations haunt Bill Cosby in the digital age. CNN. Retrieved from http://edition.cnn.com/2014/11/14/showbiz/tv/bill-cosby-rape-allegations/index.html#em3
Kovaleski, S. (2014). Wife of Bill Cosby Places Fault with News Media. New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/16/us/bill-cosbys-wife-comes-to-his-defense.html
Lusk, D. (2015). Bill Cosby timeline: From past allegations to the unfolding frenzy. CBS News. Retrieved from http://www.cbsnews.com/news/bill-cosby-rape-allegations-timeline-hannibal-buress-joan-tarshis/
McDonald, S. (2015). Cosby accuser whose complaint may fall within statute of limitations met with police. Retrieved from http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/01/15/reports-cosby-accuser-whose-complaint-may-fall-within-statute-of-limitations-met-with-police/
McGovern, K. (2013). R. Kelly’s Alleged Sex Crimes Are Still Horrific 13 Years Later. SPIN. Retrieved from http://www.spin.com/2013/12/r-kelly-sex-crimes-jim-derogatis/
SPJ Code of Ethics. Society of Professional Journalists. Retrieved from http://www.spj.org/ethicscode.asp
Trager, R., Russomanno, J., Ross, S. D., & Reynolds, A. (2014). The Law of Journalism and Mass Communication (4th Ed.). United States: SAGE.
What is the Statute of Limitations for Rape? (2015). Lexis Nexis Academic. Retrieved from http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/lnacademic/
