‘Manslaughter via the press’: UK tabloids under fire for Caroline Flack reporting following TV presenter’s death
The death of TV presenter Caroline Flack has unleashed a furious backlash against the UK’s tabloid media, with many accusing the newspapers of contributing to the 40-year-old star’s tragic death.
The former Love Island presenter was found dead at her home in east London on Saturday after taking her own life.
The shock news prompted a flood of tributes but also a ferocious outburst of anger, chiefly directed at the Sun, the Mirror, and the Daily Mail.
Pleasure knowing this absolute Diamond. Fuck the SCUM @TheSunpic.twitter.com/fQsDTO1xSs
— Frankie Cocozza (@FrankieCocozza) February 16, 2020
Flack was the focus of a barrage of tabloid stories after she allegedly assaulted her boyfriend in December, prompting her to step down from her high-profile gig on the hugely popular reality show.
The Sun newspaper was blasted for deleting a story about a Valentine’s Day card featuring a drawing of the presenter with a message saying “I’ll f**king lamp you.” The story was published the day before Flack’s death but has been removed from the website and replaced with a legal warning.
Watch @TheSun pulling all their stories now that Caroline Flack has passed away. You can delete the stories but your impact can’t be undone. Shame on you. #ripcaroline#ripcarolineflackpic.twitter.com/TWSlrJ4iDk
— Dean (@DeanCoxj) February 15, 2020
The hashtags #Don’tBuyTheSun and #CarolinesLaw trended on Twitter as people expressed their outrage at the newspaper and called for stricter regulations. A message carrying the hashtag from actor Hugh Grant racked up more than 60,000 likes.
Author Matt Haig described it as “manslaughter via the press.”
If a celebrity dies by suicide after a massive media onslaught this is manslaughter via the press. The media love ticking boxes and doing their mental health campaigns but fail to take any accountability when they impact people’s health.
— Matt Haig (@matthaig1) February 15, 2020
“The media love ticking boxes and doing their mental health campaigns but fail to take any accountability when they impact people’s health,” he wrote.
Popstar Niall Horan also waded into the debate, tweeting: “Tabloids will never hold themselves accountable in any shape or form for any death. I feel very sad for those who write these terrible articles simply for clickbait and a wage at the end of the year.”
Tabloids will never hold themselves accountable in any shape or form for any death. I feel very sad for those who write these terrible articles simply for clickbait and a wage at the end of the year.
— Niall Horan (@NiallOfficial) February 15, 2020
Labour MP Ian Byrne for Liverpool West Derby added: “A despicable rag which continues to spread a daily message of vindictiveness and hate in its pages. If this country did what my city did 31 years ago, the world we live in would be a far better place for so many. #DontBuyTheSun.”
The paper has been subject to a long-running boycott in Liverpool due to its coverage of the Hillsborough Stadium disaster which saw 96 Liverpool FC fans die in a crush in 1989.
The S*n have swiftly gone from panning Caroline Flack to teary tributes. This filthy tabloid, and it’s owner, should’ve been closed down a long time ago. #dontbuythesun - now, or ever.
— Rachael Swindon #UTFC (@Rachael_Swindon) February 15, 2020
#CarolinesLaw should mean the press are NOT allowed to publish things they know to be false. They do it knowing they can put a retraction bottom left of page 927.But the front page has done the damage. Oh, and: #dontbuythesun
— James Foster (@JamesEFoster) February 16, 2020
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) was also criticized for pressing ahead with a case against Flack for allegedly assaulting her boyfriend, Lewis Burton.
Flack entered a not guilty plea to the assault charge and was released on bail ahead of a trial in March. In a statement released on Saturday night, her management company criticized the CPS for pursuing the “show trial” even after Burton said he did not support it.
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