The news that a guest on the Jeremy Kyle Show committed suicide following an appearance has resulted in calls for ITV to axe the popular reality TV show.

Given the nature of the programme this is hardly the first time that it has courted controversy. It has continually been accused of exploiting its guests who are predominantly from the working classes. In 2007 a judge described the show as a form of “human bear-baiting”.

All of this raises an interesting question regarding the potential liability of the producers in tort law. After all think about the three-part test for establishing a duty of care:

1. The harm was a reasonably foreseeable result of the defendant’s conduct;
2. There is a proximate relationship that exists between the parties; and
3. It is fair, just and reasonable to impose a duty of care.

There is some debate to be had over the issue of foreseeability but is not beyond the realm of possibility that a judge would hold that a duty of care does exist.

Does the show breach this duty? Well on the one hand the producers do take more precautions than counterparts from overseas by offering counselling and other forms of support after the cameras stop rolling. On the other hand the bear-baiting accusation is not without merit as Jeremy Kyle himself is deliberately provocative for the sake of entertainment even when this leads to emotional trauma or even a physical altercation between victims participants.

Whether a claim would be successful depends on a number of factors and it would be impossible to conclude with any certainty without knowing more about things like the quality of care that is offered. What is perhaps more interesting is the political and cultural debate about the future of such shows. Our television is the product of our times and sometimes that means breath-taking quality as with Game of Thrones (ignoring Daenerys’ season 8 story arc) but it also means people watching repeats of Jeremy Kyle on ITV2. The fact that this debate is even happening is a step forward in itself as it suggests we might just about be getting over the voyeuristic sadism that garnered the show popularity when it first aired in 2005.

Obiter

This week’s episode of the podcast looks at the level of protection that car insurance offers and how the UK differs from the rest of the European Union. It was a thankful relief from the previous week’s show where I (awkwardly) talked about erectile dysfunction.

Another legal podcast ‘Law Pod UK‘ from 1 Crown Office Row has an interesting discussion on the new copyright directive. As someone who creates content for YouTube this is a topic I follow closely!

Speaking of content creators, Legal Cheek recently had a click-bait article on those who post photos of their study materials on Instagram. Honestly the best reason to visit the site is for the comments and the top one for this piece doesn’t disappoint:
Often there’s a correlation between those who spend more time taking pictures of their perfectly presented work, and those who end up with a Pass.