by Police in Thailand are reportedly investigating allegations that a CNN crew breached crime scene restrictions and improperly entered the kindergarten where a former police officer he was killed dozens of children and adults with guns and knives last Thursday.
The complaint against CNN was testified by a Thai journalist who saw CNN crew members climbing over police tape to get out of the building. The Thai public responded with outrage when photos of the incident went viral on social media. Much of the criticism could be summed up as “why did CNN send reporters who are so insensitive to Thai customs?” and “Why would anyone think it was a good idea to take news footage of a gruesome crime scene where children were brutally murdered?”
Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand (FCCT) he said The CNN crew was “unprofessional” and committed a “serious breach of journalistic ethics in reporting crimes.”
“This was not a scoop, or an example of intrusive reporting, because no other news organization, foreign or local, was willing to behave in this unethical manner, and any of them could have,” the FCCT said in its statement. . .
“Thailand has been traumatized by this tragedy and there has been great concern throughout that inappropriate images should not be publicized on traditional and social media. Simple respect for the dead and their families is only one of the reasons,” the FCCT said.
Danaichok Boonsom, head of local administration for the small town of Uthai Sawan, filed a report accusing CNN of “unauthorized entry into state property.”
“I want them to respect us. They should not do whatever they want to do or think only about getting their score,” he said he said.
Boonsom noted that the city was flooded with journalists after Thursday’s massacre, the worst such incident in Thai history.
“Let the legal process proceed, I don’t want to reveal all the details. Let the police do their job by investigating,” he told the press as he left the police station.
CNN released a statement Saturday claiming its crew was given permission to film inside the daycare by local public health officials:
— CNN International PR (@cnnipr) October 8, 2022
On Sunday, while continuing to insist that its reporters entered the crime scene “in good faith” and with the necessary permission, CNN pulled the report and its graphic images from its website.
“We deeply regret any distress or offense our report may have caused and any inconvenience to the Thai police at such a painful time for the country,” he said CNN Executive Vice President Mike McCarthy.
The two CNN journalists who entered the kindergarten, reporter Anna Coren and cameraman Daniel Hodge, videotaped an apology after being questioned by police.
Coren expressed her “deepest apologies” to the victims and their families and said, “we are very sorry to have caused you more pain and suffering.”
On Sunday, the Bangkok Post said Coren and Hodge, who are citizens of Australia and the United Kingdom respectively, entered Thailand on tourist visas that did not allow them to work in the country.
Thailand’s Immigration Bureau said the visas for both CNN reporters have been revoked and they have been fined 5,000 baht (about US$133) each for violating the terms of their visas. Both journalists past Thailand to Hong Kong on Monday.
