deBuren

'The Eight Deadly Sins'* is a new series of discussions/debates each named after one of the seven deadly or cardinal sins.

These days, the original meaning of many of the deadly sins has been constricted into one aspect of the Catholic interpretation. By once again alluding to the deadly sin in its original frame of reference and relating it to contemporary society, one broadens the view and discussions can develop into topical debates about ethical questions, standpoints and themes which affect today's society.

The host of this new series is Rik Torfs.

This time, it is the turn of lust and, more specifically, journalistic lust. In the French newspapers, one was able to read about how Nicolas Sarkozy sent Cécilia a text message saying he would break up the relationship with Bruni, if only she would come back. The children of CD&V politician Jo Vandeurzen sent a text message to cdH politician Joëlle Milquet and a day later it appeared in the papers. In the series 'De zestien is voor u', De Standaard revealed all the behind-the-scenes details of the government's negotiations at Hertoginnendal, including the informal contacts, the text-message agreements, inter-party discussions and the conversations with the king.

The confidentiality of the letter can no longer be violated: nobody writes letters any more. But the modern version ? the text message ? can seemingly appear in the papers without any trouble. Even though the journalists are offered the information, one can still ask oneself whether it should be published or not. The extra benefit for the citizen is not always or not immediately clear.

In the Netherlands, a crime reporter pretended to be a police officer. Is this part of the essence of journalism? Is it ethically legitimate? The ethical boundaries of journalism are continually being explored and moved. Is the commercialisation of the truth a fact of life?

A debate about lust in journalism with Peter Vandermeersch, editor in chief of De Standaard, chosen as Marketer of the Year in 2007, Walter Zinzen, ex-VRT journalist and Willem Schoonen, editor in chief of Trouw.

* The weekly Humo, which claims the ownership of the label The Seven Cardinal Sins, asks deBuren to change the title of its debate series. From now on we call it The Eight Cardinal Sins. The eighth one being that of overestimating yourself.