A senior police officer in south London is blaming the local press for fear of crime in the area.

Chief Superintendent Mark Gore told a community meeting in Croydon it was the way that crime was reported which was to blame for the high levels of fear in the London borough.

The borough commander was speaking just days after a triple stabbing on a Croydon estate and weeks after a schoolboy stabbed a classmate in the head with a pair of scissors.

The Croydon Advertiser is also carrying a letter in this week’s edition from Croydon Council leader, Coun Mike Fisher, which said: “Who is responsible for projecting a negative image?

“I wonder if local newspapers, who make a commercial living in the town, feel any responsibility for their part in feeding local residents with all the doom and gloom they can drag up.”

The comments have sparked both support and criticism on the Croydon Advertiser’s website from readers.

Advertiser editor-in-chief Ian Carter said: “It is clear from the messages people leave on this website that people are hugely concerned about crime in Croydon.

“It would be a dereliction of duty if we bowed to pressure to put a positive spin on all our articles.”

News editor Jo Wadsworth added: “A lot of people are feeling that the police are out of order for trying to blame us.

“It’s something they come out with on a regular basis but it was said at a public meeting in such strong terms.

“Croydon is a high-crime area and we cannot help but reflect that in the way we report things.

“If there’s a stabbing every week, which there invariably is, we have to report that. Sadly, that’s the image Croydon gets.

“Crime in Croydon, especially knife and gun-related crime, is escalating and obviously our coverage reflects that. Still, people always shoot the messenger.

“Our sales figures go up when there’s a crime on the front page which bears out that there’s an interest in reading about crime.”