Gutter press have no shame

I don't often use the phrase 'gutter press' because I think it's generally rather condescending - as the editor of a free paper I'm sure it has been thrown at me and my colleagues a few times.
But this piece illustrates why it exists... my editorial from last week. Sorry I've been so late posting, rather caught up in Haiti events these days!

When news broke in January that conjoined twins had been born to a couple in Cork, there was widespread excitement, not just in Cork but throughout the country.

When pictures of Hassan and Hussein Benhaffaf first arrived on newsdesks, they were gazed at (in this office at least) and oohed and aahed at, because they are not just conjoined, but two of the sweetest looking kids I’ve ever seen.

Quickly nicknamed ‘Cork’s Little Fighters’, the boys have become regular celebrities; but their parents only revealed their identities because of the overwhelming interest in their case.

The fact that they are conjoined made them newsworthy, because of the rarity of that condition. And when they appeared on the Late Late Show, the sight of their proud parents and sisters showing them off, like any other babies, was simply adorable.

Since then, they have appeared regularly in national and local newspapers, due to that same overwhelming interest.

Hassan and Hussein will soon undergo separation surgery, which must be a dreadful worry to their parents.

As usual, Cork has not been found lacking and the support for the twins has been huge, with a bike run held by the Rebel Riders raising over €21,000 on Sunday. That’s just one of a number of fundraising events held for the twins; with the medical expenses they are facing, all donations are welcome, their uncle told us.

All donations, with the exception of one.

Reports surfaced over the past few days that a tabloid newspaper offered thousands of euro to Angie and Azzedine, the twins’ parents, for pictures of them. The sum reported was €100,000, but it was far less than that.

So far, so Brad and Angelina?

Not quite.

The newspaper wanted pictures of Hassan and Hussein in the bath.

In the times we’re in, pictures of children in the bath are not something you print in a newspaper, for a number of reasons.

While doting mums and dads love to watch their little ones splashing around, and are fully entitled to take such pictures (we all have that embarrassing photo album at home), a national newspaper is another thing.

And the added element of the twins being conjoined is no doubt what prompted the request in the first place.

Whatever about taking pictures of just any child in the bath, taking naked pictures intended to show off and exploit the twins’ difference to sell newspapers is inherently sick.

It’s a testament to the good taste and sense of Angie and Azzedine that they said no. If they had said yes, I wouldn’t have criticised them; they are going to need money, and parents will go to huge lengths to look after their children’s welfare.

Thankfully, widespread goodwill and generosity has saved them from having to sacrifice their sons’ dignity in order to pay for their life-altering operation; shame on the newspaper that tried to make them do so. It brings all of us in the media into disrepute.

Some gold amid the gloom

Every day, as I sift through hundreds of emails, I marvel at the variety of events happening in Cork every week. The doom and gloom of the recession has convinced many of us that the country is dead; that there is no money; nothing happening; and that everyone is miserable. This gloom isn't exclusive to Ireland. Twenty-three workers at France Telecom have taken their own lives since the beginning of 2008; the trend is blamed on cost-cutting at the company.

In America, just 39 per cent of workers professed loyalty to their employers in December 2008, compared with 95 per cent in June 2007. And the number who trusted their employers fell from 79 per cent to 22 per cent over the same period.

It looks like the cynicism currently being directed at Irish politicians is not an Irish phenomenon, or even a political phenomenon. Right now, the entire Western world is experiencing a comparable mood swing. John O'Donoghue's resignation comes just months after the Speaker of the English Parliament was forced to resign. Italian PM Silvio Berlusconi is probably facing fraud charges. However, we seem to be forgetting something pretty important. To go back to my emails, there are hundreds of them a day. Many of them are from PR companies, pushing products and services. More are from politicians, trying to highlight issues (or get their names in the paper). But the vast majority are related to charities, community groups, choirs, sports clubs, retired groups, and the like.

The 'third sector', which is made up of community, development and voluntary groups, has long been and remains absolutely essential in Irish life. From the early days of the GAA as the nineteenth century faded, to the Special Olympics in the infancy of the twenty-first, we have always excelled at giving up our time and effort, and giving 100 per cent, to help someone, somewhere. This week alone there are so many voluntary events – maybe not earth-shattering, but important to somebody – on in Cork that it is hard to even record all of them and notify a depressed public that there is life, Jim, but maybe not as we know it.

This life is not centred around flash cars and penthouse apartments, but ordinary people and their extraordinary contributions to others. Here are a few examples: - This week is Positive Ageing week, run by Age Action, a charity that provides help, support and advice to older people. See our piece on p12.

- The Irish Red Cross – a voluntary organisation – is teaching people in Cork to become first aid instructors. They will save lives. See our piece on p18. - Cork Simon Community volunteers will collect money for the homeless at church gates this weekend. See our piece on p15.

- A fundraising event will take place in aid of Enable Ireland and the Cloghroe Aspergers Support Group this evening. See our piece on p15. This is just a tiny sample of events around Cork City and County this week. But they are enough to remind us of what makes Irish society. Cork can get through the recession; some will lose hope, many will lose jobs, but all of us have something to gain from giving. There is some gold amid the gloom, just not the kind we're used to.