Press Council rejects Merck's complaint against Handelsblatt
In a lengthy ruling, the Press Council also rejected the complaint filed by Merck. The American pharmaceutical company had complained that an article in the *Schweizer Handelsblatt* contained information that was harmful to its business and competitive interests.
The Press Council also rejects Merck's complaint on lengthy grounds. The American pharmaceutical company had complained that the article "Merck hopes promising Aids drug will pay" in the Swiss Handelsblatt, which was taken over by the Wall Street Journal, contained false information that was damaging to business and competition. The article, published on October 12, 2007, begins with the sentence: "Merck could soon open a new chapter in the fight against AIDS if the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approves Isentress." The stumbling block was the fact that the drug had already received FDA approval at the time and had already been launched on the American and Mexican markets, and Handelsblatt apologized for the error and printed a corrective. But that was not enough for Merck. The company therefore insisted that the correction also appear on the homepage and be sent to a number of news agencies.
The Press Council has now ruled that this was not necessary. The Handelszeitung should have added a separate note to the contractually required, unchanged reprint of the article with the information that the US authorities had approved the drug in the meantime. The fact that the respondent failed to do so because it did not clarify the current status of the approval process before reprinting the article is a shortcoming, but does not constitute a breach of the duty to tell the truth or a false processing of sources.
The Handelszeitung's error is classified by the Press Council as trivial. It even goes so far as to criticize the complainant Merck for its harsh action against Handelsblatt. It had overshot the mark with its protest. Where reactions to a minor error are so disproportionate, the concern of reporting, which is worthy of protection, suddenly turns into an attack on the freedom and independence of media professionals, the Press Council writes in a reprimanding tone.
The Press Council has now ruled that this was not necessary. The Handelszeitung should have added a separate note to the contractually required, unchanged reprint of the article with the information that the US authorities had approved the drug in the meantime. The fact that the respondent failed to do so because it did not clarify the current status of the approval process before reprinting the article is a shortcoming, but does not constitute a breach of the duty to tell the truth or a false processing of sources.
The Handelszeitung's error is classified by the Press Council as trivial. It even goes so far as to criticize the complainant Merck for its harsh action against Handelsblatt. It had overshot the mark with its protest. Where reactions to a minor error are so disproportionate, the concern of reporting, which is worthy of protection, suddenly turns into an attack on the freedom and independence of media professionals, the Press Council writes in a reprimanding tone.
