Press Council reprimands Observer: affected parties not taken into account
The Press Council has reprimanded the magazine *Beobachter* for making serious allegations against a former managing director based solely on information from an insider. In such cases, sources must be verified and the accused must be given an opportunity to be heard.
The Press Council rejected a corresponding complaint against the Observer partially well, as he announced on Friday. The magazine had claimed in April, first online and then in the printed edition, that the Berner Heimatwerk had run into difficulties because a former managing director had evaded money. This had resulted in eleven dismissals and the liquidation of the cooperative. The only source is an insider.
That is not enough, according to the Press Council. The seriousness of the accusation would have necessitated a hearing, even if the accused was not immediately identifiable to a wide audience.
In addition, the woman had Observer After the first publication, it was pointed out that the evaded sum - if there had been any evasion at all - would not have resulted in the closure of a store and that the alleged liquidation had not taken place at all.
The editorial team should have checked this before publishing in print. In doing so, the editorial team had violated the journalists' code of conduct with regard to the search for truth, source work and the duty to listen. (SDA)
