The Times has been inundated with letters and phone calls after publishing a picture of a newborn baby girl who was burned and dumped in open veld in Soweto on Tuesday.
Though a number of readers commended the paper for its courage in publishing the picture, others said we had gone too far.
Harry Moultrie, Director of Enhancing Children’s HIV Outcomes , said The Times “should have waited for an autopsy to establish whether the infant died as a result or a termination [abortion], was still-born, died of exposure or was killed”.
The director of Media Monitoring Africa, William Bird, said: “In deciding to publish the image on the front page, [we] maintain that The Times failed in its obligation to minimise harm. By opting for the shock factor, The Times ignored the emotional distress that the image might cause children or adults who have experienced infant-related trauma.”