slutet på sagan prinsessan dianas död i press, radio och tv

case; according to them, there are no Paparazzi
in Sweden, and if there were they
would never be engaged by the prominent
news media.
However, it is hardly likely that the
Swedish media differ in any crucial way
from the British media. The differences
originate in the two countries’ different
market sizes and audience structures. The
financial conditions are crucial and similar.
Moreover, both British and Swedish
Media belong to a global media industry.
Much of what the British tabloids are accused
of – for example, exposure of individuals
and source analysis when it is
convenient – is also found in the Swedish
evening papers. For more than a decade,
Swedish media have also covered Princess
Diana with largely the same intensity
as other foreign, non-British media.
In the Swedish media, the Paparazzi
and foreign celebrity-oriented journalism
was presented as something distinct from
Swedish journalism. It is possible that this
strong repudiation was ultimately about
how Princess Diana’s death laid bare
journalism’s role and terms in a manner
that was extremely unpleasant for almost
all media.
The debate on the media’s responsibility
also lays bare one of their cardinal
problems – difficulty in dealing with flaws
in their own activities. Criticism of media
was certainly dealt out and the terms of
reporting in the media were certainly
discussed, but this had by and large nothing
to do with their own work. However,
introspection was hardly evident in the
media studied here.
There is an element of narrative technique
in the criticism of the photographers’
actions and in the descriptions of the Paparazzi
in general. A story constructed
using traditional narrative technique is
based on a conflict. In news journalism,
168
the conflict perspective is central and can
concern, for example, opposition among
various political viewpoints or the
individual’s interests as opposed to those
of public authorities. For a short time, the
Paparazzi played the role of villain in the
story of Princess Diana’s death.
The seven photographers were already
condemned in the media on the first day
of reporting. To be sure, many opinions
were presented in editorials, commentaries
and chronicles, but the picture of the
photographers was overwhelmingly negative
even on the news pages. The designated
villains – the photographers – were
blamed and criticised more than what
was justified by the actual course of events
and the facts at hand, while the victim –
the tragic heroine Princess Diana – was
canonised. As already mentioned, two
years after the Princess’s death, a French
court of law freed the accused photographers
from all responsibility for the accident.
This illustrates a general media problem:
the search for conflicts and guilty
parties. In connection with big news
events, time for thoroughness, source control
and a deeper analysis of fragmentary
and contradictory factual information is
something that the journalist seldom has.
The technique is to rather crudely report
incoming information. To the extent that
reports are revised, the most astonishing
and sensational information – which is
also used for placards, headlines and introductions
– is usually given priority.
Created opinions
The British royal family and the British
monarchy received extensive and strong
criticism during the week following Princess
Diana’s death. The representatives of
the public who spoke out in the Swedish
media were chiefly critical of the royal