Ward Worries About Payment For Interview

Prof. Stephen Ward, ethics chair, is worried about a decision by Global Television in British Columbia, Canada, to pay $5,000 to a charity to interview Graham McMynn, the son of a wealthy Vancouver businessman, who was held in captivity by a group of men for eight days. A financial relationship between a news organization and those who are interviewed could affect public perception of the media's independence and objectivity, media ethics professor Stephen Ward said.

Bob McMynn, Graham's father who acted as his son's agent in negotiations with the Vancouver station in the CanWest television network, said yesterday he came up with the idea of donating to charity -- the Vancouver Police Foundation -- because police had saved his life.  Print, radio and television outlets were hounding his son for an interview, Mr. McMynn said. U.S. stations had offered "significant dollars."

Ian Haysom, Global British Columbia's news director, said: "By giving it to a charity, we don't feel we are enriching anybody's pocket. We're doing something here for the good of the community. In the end, it was an interview we felt was in the public interest to get ... our hands are clean."

But Prof. Ward said the payment of money to a charity was less worrisome than putting cash in the pocket of the person who was interviewed. "It's more a really worrying development that I think the public has to be aware of," he said.

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