The iPhone era

Instant scrutiny, life-long repercussions

The image seems frozen in time. An ATR airline category aeroplane captured in an obscene pose, nose down and wings on a knife’s edge. Seconds later the aircraft would enter the waters of the Taiwanese river and take with it the lives of sons and daughters, mothers and fathers. Another human tragedy captured by a bystander and blinked across the globe before the rescue crews have even reached the survivors.

It is a by-product of this digital age which in so many ways has brought the world closer. Yet still one must wonder about the benefits of sharing, liking, and tweeting on such events only seconds after they occur. Rescue efforts and formal investigations take a back seat when the opportunity to post a freeze-frame grab is at hand. While voyeurs may be gratified, are there any real benefits gained by displaying the scene front and centre? No facts are at hand, only the grand instantaneous speculation that accompanies any aviation incident. Overlooked is the fact that human loss is the real focal point. And doesn’t that deserve a little more than a threesecond ‘Oh My Gosh!’ moment before flicking to a picture of a cat hanging from a door knob in a bib and brace? Families are deprived of the dignity of learning about their loved one’s fate with some degree of discretion. Repeated on every news report time and time again and preserved eternally on the internet is the horror of a day they will struggle to ever forget. For the family of the crew, the speculation surrounding their actions will bubble to the surface as soon as the images go live. Only time and due process can reveal the true cause of any accident, but discretion is never the better part of video. Just post it now and open the conversation to see if it can go viral.