Press Council: Swiss magazine has violated privacy
The Swiss Press Council has upheld a complaint filed by author Martin Suter regarding an article in *Schweizer Illustrierte*. The magazine had reported on the funeral of Suter’s young adopted son and published a photo of the grave.
Suter did not primarily defend himself against the violation of his privacy, but above all against the way in which the information was obtained, as the Swiss Press Council wrote in a press release on Tuesday. With its article of September 7, 2009, the magazine attempted to create the impression that it had been invited to the funeral and had received personal and private information from the family. This information came from a friend of the family, who in turn is acquainted with an employee of Schweizer Illustrierte. The informant had explained that she had spoken from "friend to friend" and had not even considered that it was a journalistic assignment, especially as the journalist had retired in 2008. Schweizer Illustrierte rejected the complaint as unfounded and initially denied that the journalist had spoken to the informant. The published information was completely factually correct.
However, the Press Council upheld the complaint. The author of the article should have made her informant aware that she would use their friendly conversation for journalistic purposes. Furthermore, in the case of Martin Suter, there was no public interest in looking behind the scenes of his private life. The publication of a picture of the gravesite of a recently deceased child, just like a report on the funeral, affects the protected privacy of the bereaved. As with weddings and christenings, celebrity funerals may only be reported on if they themselves have gone public with the information, writes the Press Council in its deliberations.
However, the Press Council upheld the complaint. The author of the article should have made her informant aware that she would use their friendly conversation for journalistic purposes. Furthermore, in the case of Martin Suter, there was no public interest in looking behind the scenes of his private life. The publication of a picture of the gravesite of a recently deceased child, just like a report on the funeral, affects the protected privacy of the bereaved. As with weddings and christenings, celebrity funerals may only be reported on if they themselves have gone public with the information, writes the Press Council in its deliberations.
