Ethical Content-Gathering For Public Communications

The purpose of consent is to build trust and show respect to the person whose image and content you’re capturing. In every situation possible, we try to get written consent before photographing or filming.  In the rare cases where it’s not possible – and as long as the situation is not degrading – you can get consent afterwards. Always ensure the delegation has consent forms available in the required language so you can take several copies with you when gathering content.

Note, however, that even when valid consent has been obtained, the ICRC is required to consider all foreseeable consequences of identifying individuals. In this context, “identifying” means “providing personal data, i.e. showing their faces in a recognizable way in photographs or video, naming them, including in audio recordings or radio, or providing other identifying information such as the names of their parents, siblings or home address, or elements related to their particular content, a piece of clothing, etc.” The process of obtaining consent is just as essential as gathering the content, and it’s important to carefully consider the quality of the consent obtained and whether the person was under duress when providing it. A person’s consent should be informed, explicit, unambiguous and freely given. It requires meaningful dialogue and is about listening and asking questions. Fully informed consent requires a full conversation reflecting on any risks; although this ethical approach to obtaining consent takes extra  time, it also engages participants more than a simple yes-or-no approach.

When gathering content, the consent forms will help you to clearly communicate to the person (or their legal guardians or family members) in simple terms:

• who we are and why we are there
• where the photos or videos may appear, by showing examples
• the aid they receive will not be impacted by consenting or not
• they can withdraw consent during or after an interview and how.

People should also be informed of their data protection rights (information, access, correction and objection), and they should be provided with the contact details of an ICRC employee and of the ICRC Data Protection team so they can reach out if they have a question or wish to withdraw their consent. It’s important to specify that once a communication product is published, the ICRC’s control over it will diminish, since we cannot control how third parties use it. Safeguarding people’s personal data is an essential aspect of protecting their lives as well as their physical and mental integrity. Be sure to refer to and abide by the standards set out in the ICRC Rules on Personal Data Protection.

When we want to photograph or film someone, we should provide them with numerous opportunities to say “no” and express their concerns. This can be done by going through the checklist at the beginning of the consent form with them and asking, for example:

• Is there anyone who you don’t want to see this photo or video?
• Would you feel more comfortable if we didn’t take your/your child’s photo, or film you/your child?
• Are you still comfortable with being filmed?

You must make clear that if they decline, there will be no impact on the services the ICRC provides to them or their community.

If the person will be photographed or filmed in a way that does not reveal their identity (especially if they fall under one of the vulnerable categories listed in the next section), you should also communicate this to reassure them. For example, show them the images after you’ve taken them and speak with them to ensure they’re comfortable with the way they are portrayed.  In this example, the ICRC’s war surgery work is conveyed without showing the patient’s identity.