[Saba Sports News] Recently, Lionel Messi’s camp released a statement confirming that his father Jorge Horacio Messi is recovering well, while condemning the false rumours circulating online. Prior to the statement from Messi’s team, Florencia Peña, a host on Argentine streaming channel Luzu TV, claimed that Messi’s father had passed away. In response, Nico Occhiato, host and producer at Luzu TV, posted a message which read: “I want to say that I am just as outraged as all of you by what happened on the Luzu channel. The remarks made do not represent me, nor the message we aim to convey through our programmes. I completely disagree with them. Given that this was an unacceptable mistake in our communication process, an internal review will be conducted, and severe sanctions will be imposed.” Following the incident, Luzu TV’s management resolved to dismiss all staff held accountable for the incident, and Florencia Peña tendered her resignation voluntarily.
The editor believes that as the ethical bottom line of the media keeps sinking, certain individuals never fail to remind us that they can sink even lower, act more shamelessly, and inflict far greater harm on others. The unsubstantiated, utterly unethical remarks made by Florencia Peña on a streaming channel not only invaded a private citizen’s personal life, but also make people wonder whether some figures believe that holding a microphone or a pen entitles them to disregard factual verification, along with basic human dignity and morality.