A weekly newspaper apologised after using a photograph of two people supporting a specific charity to accompany a story about a different good cause.
The Bexhill Observer used a photo of a woman and child in front of a Diabetes UK poster, wearing Diabetes UK t-shirts and holding information relating to Diabetes UK, in the piece about a meeting of the Bexhill Diabetes Support Group.
The story described the aims of the group, included its contact details, and noted that it was set up in 2011 as an “independent” group.
Caroline Cornford complained to the Independent Press Standards Organisation that the Observer had breached Clause 1 (Accuracy) because of its use of the accompanying photo, which she was pictured in with her daughter.
Ms Cornford, pictured, said its inclusion gave the misleading impression that she and her daughter were associated with the BDSG, and that BDSG was in turn associated with Diabetes UK.
The Observer said the picture in question was a library photo and admitted that more care should have been taken in its inclusion, saying it represented a significant inaccuracy.
The paper removed the online article, apologised to the complainant and offered to publish a correction.
This resolved the matter to her satisfaction and IPSO made no adjudication on whether there had been a breach of Code.
The full resolution statement can be read here.
Sign up for our free daily email bulletin
Follow HTFP on Twitter
Got a story? Email the Editor at
Anyone who says the country’s regional publishers haven’t made too many cuts too many times and aren’t shoving out papers as quick and cheaply as possible resulting in this kind of embarrassing cock up are fooling themselves, therefore is it any wonder paper sales are as bad as they are when this kind of basic error gets through.
Sadly it underlines just how poor local papers are these days,where quality and accuracy have been sacrificed for quick turn over
Report this comment
Isn’t this a JP production? not noted for quality.
Report this comment
Also an unsurprising consequence of templated pages where pictures (any pictures) are needed to fill predetermined holes.
Report this comment
Yes Notme. My old understaffed rag once killed off a couple who were very much alive, using their file pic for a couple who had died.
Report this comment
It would be interesting, as in all these cases, to have some indication of the chain of events involved. I will lay folding money that the photo in question was selected to accompany the online story first, and only then picked up for print; the HTFP story above makes it sound as if it was the paper (as distinct from the website) which made the initial error. None of which excuses the fundamental error, but they are becoming more frequent in these days when there are innumerable online deadlines to be met rather than just one a day (or one a week) for print.
Report this comment