Adjudication No. 1157 (February 2002) [2002] APC 12

Adjudication No. 1157 (February 2002)

The Australian Press Council has upheld a complaint from the Arndale shopping centre X-lotto stand owner against the Sunday Mail, Adelaide, over of an item in a page of gossipy pieces by popular columnist Bill King.

The item was based on a letter by a woman identified as "Sharon" who stated that the male X-lotto outlet attendant and owner refused to take a number of coins (including $2 and $1 coins) proffered in payment for $5.50 pensioner multi-trip bus ticket.

The article reported as fact that the attendant was rude in refusing the coins, giving as reasons that he was too busy to count them, and that it was illegal to pay with so many coins. It further stated that Sharon was the only customer, suggesting that the attendant's attitude was responsible for such poor custom.

The stand attendant, in his complaint, stated that, since his is the only X-lotto stand in the centre and he is the only male attendant, his business and he are easily identifiable. He further stated that he did accept the coins (which he said was largely 10c and 5c pieces) and that there were at least seven other customers at the stand at the time and that he was not rude to the woman.

The Council is in no position to decide who's right or wrong in this instance. However, given the potential for damage to a business which is easily identified by its customer base, the Council believes that the columnist should have inquired further into the matter before publishing the article based only on a short note from Sharon.