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It dealt with the Kiwi who set up a website containing images of young girls that would (here in NZ) be considered "objectionable publications" under our Films Videos and Publications laws.

Introducing the item, Janet McIntyre advised viewers that many of the images depicted in the programme had been digitally altered so as to avoid creating offense and, one would assume, to avoid committing an offence.

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It's that last point that got me thinking...

Although I felt that the item was worthy, well produced and worth watching, I have strong concerns about the actions of those who created it.

During the programme it was freely admitted that access to the pay-to-view website concerned was gained by unauthorised means -- ie: hacking.

In most countries, hacking is a crime so one can only hope that such activities were not performed in NZ but in Germany, where the laws are a little less stringent perhaps.

There's also the issue of accessing objectionable material.

Clearly the producers of the program did access images which, they openly admitted, were likely to be classified as objectionable in NZ (the depiction of naked or near-naked 14-year-olds in sexually provocative poses). If they'd done so here in NZ, they'd have been guilty of a crime under the FVP Act.

Once again, one can only hope that they "digitally altered" those images *before* they brought the footage back to New Zealand for editing - or they'd be in clear breach of our laws.

The fact that this guy was able to operate his website and engage in his erotic photographic activities quite legally because German law defines the legal age of consent to be 14 makes a mockery of our own laws in many ways.

In effect, we find that it's illegal to view (in NZ) material that is quite legal to produce (in Germany).

But the craziest thing is that last night we saw a Kiwi-made programme that would have been completely illegal to make here in New Zealand. Those involved would have become liable to prosecution under the FVP Act and our anti-hacking laws, with a chance of spending quite some time in jail.

However, (one would assume) by doing their hacking, filming and some of the editing in Germany, no laws were broken and we were able to get a much better idea of what this ex-pat Kiwi rogue has been up to.

Here in NZ, "research" for the purposes of journalism is not a mitigation for hacking or the possession of objectionable images -- but should it be?

Should suitably qualified news reporting and current-affairs organisations or individuals be able to approach DIA and get special dispensation to cover the research involved in creating an item involving such material?

Obviously assurances would need to be given that the material involved be destroyed as soon as it was no longer needed and that it would not be redistributed in an "objectionable" form -- but surely it would make life much easier for those wishing to accurately report on the issue of child-porn.

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