Adjudication No. 983 (July 1998) [1998] APC 29

ADJUDICATION No. 983 (July 1998)

The Press Council has dismissed a complaint brought by Nancy Dawson against The Chronicle, Toowoomba, arising out of the reporting of an attempted armed robbery at Mrs Dawson's store.

Mrs Dawson objected to the newspaper quoting remarks that she had made about the robber and publishing a photograph of her without first seeking her permission. She conceded that she had made remarks to a group of people gathered in front of her store after the event and that she had given a television interview at that time in which she had spoken strongly about the robber. The newspaper said that its reporter had identified himself to Mrs Dawson and that she would have seen him taking notes of her remarks to the assembled group. Mrs Dawson denied that any identification had occurred and asserted that the taking of notes of her remarks was eavesdropping.

The Council does not consider that the newspaper infringed its principles. Mrs Dawson was making her comments in public and she had shown by agreeing to a television interview that she was prepared to speak to the media about the event. The photograph was illustrative of a news story that involved a matter of public interest. The Council can understand that Mrs Dawson was probably upset at the time and may have said things that she would have preferred not to have been published but the events as reported occurred and the newspaper was entitled to report them.