I am writing to express my concern over the reporting of the news item 'Mother of shoebox baby sets the record straight,' carried in The Sunday Times on April 4.

I find myself reiterating comments and observations I had made three years ago, at the beginning of my term as commissioner for children, when I stated that the excessive media coverage of this particular incident held no benefit whatsoever for the child involved. It served no purpose other than satisfying people's curiosity and delivering a 'worthy' news headline.

I was particularly disturbed at the fact that the article carried both the name and identity of the child involved, along with published images of both child and mother. This constitutes bad practice in general when reporting on minors, but is particularly irresponsible in a situation where the child may be particularly vulnerable and under a care order, as in this particular case (irrespective of whether or not the necessary consent was attained).

The use of the term 'shoebox baby' is also an issue of grave concern, given the potential which such a term carries for the child to be perpetually stigmatised and labelled as such throughout his life.

Such reporting practices hold the potential for severely negative repercussions on the child later on in life, and are rarely taken into consideration by the media involved.

It is hoped that future news items will be guided appropriately by the principle of the best interests of the child, and that this principle in future will supersede any other possible motivation in publishing an article which deals with such sensitive subject matter.

Editor's note:
It is a shame that the Commissioner does not recognise the immensely positive aspects of this story.