Television and radio producers need to give more importance to the protection of children and vulnerable people featured in their programmes, according to the broadcasting and social welfare watchdogs.
"Many producers want to put human stories across, which is fair enough. But they have to be handled properly," according to Foundation of Social Welfare Services (FSWS) chief executive Sina Bugeja.
"We feel that the protection of vulnerable people is not uppermost in producers' minds, and people who feature in programmes are not necessarily aware of the consequences of certain exposure," she said.
Broadcasting Authority CEO Pierre Cassar said the problem was that practically all stations were farming out productions without being well-versed in legal requirements.
According to broadcasting law, producers are to revert to the Appoġġ agency within the FSWS for an assessment before featuring vulnerable people, including all children under 18.
The agency would evaluate the prospective participant and assess whether media exposure would be detrimental to the individual. But not all producers were abiding by this law and seeking Appoġġ's professional advice.
Earlier this month, One Television was fined €2,329 by the BA for filming children during the programme Singled Out. The children were featured in scenes that were not of benefit to them but merely added to the entertainment value of the programme.
Over the years, new programmes developed, such as tear-jerker Tista' Tkun Int and, more recently, makeover series Arani Issa, which revolved around people-stories.
While both Ms Bugeja and Mr Cassar said they had nothing against such programmes, they were concerned that people who consented to be on them did not always fully comprehend the consequences of relinquishing their privacy.
Appoġġ made sure that, when it came to vulnerable people, these consequences were clearly explained. Ms Bugeja stressed that producers need to seek Appoġġ's assessment before filming.
"If we find that the child will be exposed to his detriment, we cannot approve, and nothing will change that. We are here to protect the interest of the children or vulnerable person," she said.
According to broadcasting regulations, producers are to ensure that, irrespective of parents' approval, children's participation in a programme is for their benefit.
A clear distinction must be made between the individual participation of a child for personal reasons as opposed to the collective portrayal of children, such as educational features where a group of children are filmed, Mr Cassar said.
But is it not the parent's responsibility to decide whether a child should be featured on a programme?
"There are several laws in place to ensure children are protected, such as the seatbelt law... While in principle we believe parents have the best interest of their child at heart, there may be situations when this is not the case or when the parents do not understand the long-term implications of their decisions," Ms Bugeja said.