The Edi ' - The Leveson Inquiry

For Distribution to CPs
that they were taken during the occupation of a former owner, who
complained. The PCC ruled that the picturas showing the former
owner’s furniture suggested Ms Winsleft had disposed of treasured
wedding gifts.
]’he comptaint was upheld A caption making clear that the
pictures showed the interiors pro-Ms Winslet~ might have kept the
magazine outer trouble. But only if it was made very c~ear
editors to chrenic]e each digital enhancement of every picture. The
Image would need to have been distorted enough to have been
capable of misleading the reader
The need for speedy and clear corrections is set out in sub-clause
Hidden escape-clause justifications aren’t acceptable to the PCC lii which requires that e significant inaccuracy, mlmeading statement
-- as a local newspaper discovered when tt ran the story of a p0iice or distortion, once recegnised must be corrected promptly and with
raid, in which six refugees were arrested, under a Page One duepmminence. There is no hard and tast definition ln either caSe.
headline The Front Line In Folkestone, apparently illustrated by a Promptness end prominence must be decided by what is reasonable
large pictu~ of officers in riot gear in all the circumstances, particularly subject to any over-riding legal
The fact that the picture showed an entirely separate incident was
only revealed on an inside page. The PCC upheld the complaintconsiderations.whileremindingeditorathatinaccurateormisleadingreportingcould
Promptness: While delays in some cases may be genuinely
generate an atmosphere of fear and hostility not borne out by the
facts, fHarl;~nar!dl~arm~r;vFo;£es~cn~,HuaidRe~o,;~;,
unavoidable, the Commission takes a stern view of unnecessary
~ 1999~ delays in righting u ndisputed -- or incontestable -- errors, especially
(See Blsiefind} where the repercussions can be serious.
A newspaper wrongly reported that an estranged husband was
Was it diVerSion? The PCC insists that if a picture is not what it involved in a knife-wielding incident with his wife’s new boyfriend. It
seems, or if it has been posed or digitally manipulated, the reader was not her boyfriend -- she did not have one -- but a neighbour.
should generally be told. An exception might be in publishing spoofs
-- such as April Fool stories -- where the man pulation is the story
However, due to what the editor described as a "breakdown in
communications ", the paper toiled to correct the error for six weeks
and will ultimately be revealed. The test would be whether the reader --during which time the husband was found dead.
had been significently misled. Most are not-- and they get the joke The Poe ruled {A ~umb~, ~ L~r;. "w~mes ~m@’m ;e’-et. ~ot
if they are.
59 2002~ that the delay, while inadvertent, was not acceptable in
However, a picture illustrating a genuine story of local prostitution circumstances where the potential consequences of the mistake
and showing what appeared to be a vice gift on a street corner was were serious. It also found that the correction, when eventually
doubly damned. The newspaper admitted it had been digitally
created by combining two images -- and was posed using a model.
published, should have included an apology.
The PCC ruled that in any ease where images were significantly Due prominence: As with the publication of adverse PCC
atteree= the caption should say so 1~’ r~e~ v ~ulo~ cn Su~y adjudications fSe~.; Pag~ ~, ’~), the Commission will take into account
all the circumstances to decide whether the ~rammence g~ven to a
Again, the Key word is significantly. The PCC does not expect correction, clarification, or apology amounts to an adequate remedy
The Commission expressed concern that misunderstandings could lead to
inaccurate, misleading or distorted reporting, in breach of the Carla’s
accuracy rules {C ~.L~se °~i!, and might also generate a fear and hostility that
was not borne out by the facts.
Although the Code’e Discrimination rules ~Cbm~;~ ~ 2 -- relating to
pejorative, prejudicial or irrelevant references -- apply only to individuals, the
wider question of whether a description is accurate, misleading or distorted
applies equally to groups. This means a term such as "illegal asylum seeker °
Would be a breach, since it is inaccurate.
The guidance suggested:
~ An asylum seeker is ape ’son currently seeking r ugee status or
humanitarian protection.
A re.gee is someone w~ o has fled their country fear of their ti! ~= -- and
may have been granted ~ sylum under the 195I F fugee Conveni on, or
who otherwise qualifies f~ r humanitarian protecti~ , discretionary Ieave or
has been granted except~ ~nal leave to remain in’ ~= U~.
An illegal immigrant Woul J describe a person Wb ~ad been refu~ -=d such
status, and had failed ~o ~ ~sp0nd to a remPva} nc ~e to quit Bfitai ~.
The PCC has also held that stories which generatal ear and hostiii y ~ot
berne out by the facts mfgh~ in certain circumstance affect the waif =re of
children, in breach of~’~C~u’~ ~ ~.
It has always taken the view that due prominence does not mean
equal prominence; an error n a Page One lead would not
automatically reeu~re a Page One tend correction. However, the PCC
waulcl expect that the positioning of apologies or corrections should
generally reflect the seriousness of the error and that woulo
include front page apolog~es where appropriate.
When the Evening Standard ran a Page One story mcerreetly
stating that Prince Philip bad prostate cancer, the newspaper quickly
acknowledged the error and within 36 hours the PCC negotiated a
This included a Page One reference to a Page 5 item apologising
unreservedly to the Prince and his family for making the distressing
allegation and breaching his privacy it was a classic example of a
prompt, prominent and proportionate apology working rapidly to
minimise the damage of a bad erro~ However, when apologies are
not treated in such a way it can seriously compound the problem
and aggravate the damage done.
The Mayor of Totnes complained that a Daily Express story
claiming that she had personally ordered the scrapping of civic
preyers to avoid offending other faiths, Was not true. The council as
a whole had agreed the move and it was not in deference to other
faiths.
The Express agreed to epologise but, although the original story
~ad appeared on Page 5, the apology was relegated to Page 33.
The PCC censured the newspaper for "an unfortunate example of
bad practice" especially as the complainant had to wait four months
forit. {Bes~si/-Hamer ~ Da~,b Exo ’ass" Reoort 75 2007
Apelegies: In"
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