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Statement by the Executive Director (APC Update No 39) [2014] AUPressClUpdate 15; (2014) Australian Press Council Update 39

APC UPDATE | 25 August 2014

Statement by the Executive Director about articles in The Weekend Australian

The series of articles in The Weekend Australian (23-24 August 2014) about the Australian Press Council included a number of inaccuracies and misrepresentations. Some of these matters are addressed in this statement and others will be dealt with when the Council’s other obligations permit.

Chair’s withdrawal from adjudications about News Corp publications

The Weekend Australian reported (on page 8) the decision by the Chair of the Council to withdraw from any Press Council adjudications about News Corp publications which may arise at the only session of adjudications he will be chairing before he leaves the Council in a few months’ time.

It reported that News Corp publications had demanded his withdrawal from two current matters. Despite its length, however, the report failed to mention the Council statement that neither the relevant Vice Chair of the Council (a former Chief Justice) nor the Executive Director considered the demands were justified.

It also omitted the Chair’s own statement that, while agreeing the demands were unjustified, he believed that the Council could not afford to have its complaints work subjected to the further severe disruption which would flow from resisting them and related misrepresentations.

The Chair’s letter to the Editor pointing out these omissions was published today. It was altered very significantly, however, by removal of the reference to the Vice Chair being a former Chief Justice and excluding the reference to the severity of the disruption.

Article about the Chair and freedom of speech

The Weekend Australian article (on pages 1 and 8) about the Council, the Chair and freedom of speech contained too many misrepresentations to be corrected in detail here. But perhaps one correction can serve as an example.

Neither the Council nor the Chair has sought the power for it to fine newspapers. That was made clear in a written submission and orally to the Finkelstein inquiry, as well as in the Chair’s evidence at the Senate committee hearing on Senator Conroy’s Bill. The Chair has also stated it on many other public and private occasions, often with News Corp in attendance.

Complaint about kangaroo meat article

Another Weekend Australian article (on page 8) concerned a complaint made to the Council about an earlier article in The Australian on kangaroo meat. In doing so, it disclosed details of the complaint process which is still under way. Similar disclosures occurred in another article about this matter, which was published in The Australian on Friday 22 August.

The newspaper agreed that it breached its obligations of confidentiality. These obligations, often insisted upon by newspapers, are for the protection of all people and organisations involved in the process while it is still under way.

The Council cannot respond in detail now to the two articles without itself breaching confidentiality. But it can make the general statement that neither the subject matter of the complaint nor the way in which it is being handled has been reported accurately.

John Pender, Executive Director