Media failed Wu in life and even in death

Wu Yongning, known for scaling skyscrapers without safety equipment to snap astonishing selfies, died last month after slipping off a 62-story building in Changsha, Hunan province. The video of the 26-year-old's accidental fall went viral online about a month later.

The martial arts-trained stuntman who had also worked in films, was an online celebrity and, reports say, aimed to use the about $15,000 he expected to earn in prize money from the stunt to fund his wedding and pay for the treatment of his sick mother.

The online release of the video of Wu's fall by some media outlets has come as an added shock to his already aggrieved family, and evoked strong public reaction. Although the media outlets later deleted the video and apologized to Wu's family as well as the public, they should have reflected on their professional ethics and social responsibilities before releasing the video.