PressEthic

Last week, a correspondent for Fox news submitted to a controlled waterboarding experiment, to supposedly find out, first hand, how the Guantanamo detainees had suffered. YouTube has a clip posted, in which the man, clad in an orange jumpsuit, his wrists loosley bound, has his face wrapped in saran wrap by three masked men who then pour water into his nose and mouth.

It's hard to watch, because he gets agitated quickly during each stage. This viewer did not find it any less disturbing when, as the correspondent flailed, one of the masked men put a comforting hand on his shoulder and said, "you OK Steve?"

Steve decided, after his three-stage torture session, that detainees subjected to the same methods couldn't possibly suffer more than momentary trauma. He said he was "feeling fine" just minutes after the session, and that the torture made him want to give his captors information but didn't have lasting negative effects.

I can't believe this man would imagine his experience had anything to do with the experiences of a person who is actually held in a hostile situation and tortured. Anyone of standard education and intellect would have to adimt that waterboarding looks terrible, and that detainees don't get the comforting pat on the shoulder when it's over.

Fox's demonstration is unfair. If a Fox correspondent can proclaim tortoure's not just OK but "effective," and the message can be broadcast to loyal viewers, the standard for the protection of human rights can be lowered. It seems harmless enough, right? But I doubt viewers will get to hear about it when fair and balanced Steve starts having nightmares.