Adjudication No. 1208 (July 2003) [2003] APC 24

Adjudication No. 1208 (July 2003)

The Australian Press Council has dismissed a complaint against the Australian Macedonian Times ("the Times") for publishing, on 2 and 9 April 2003, letters to Radio 2NBC alleging that Mile Dimovski, a presenter on Radio 2NBC, was inciting division in the Macedonian community in Australia. The letters also called for Mr Dimovski to be denied access to airtime. One of the letters also criticised 2NBC for an alleged failure to deal with repeated complaints about Mr Dimovski's on-air remarks.

The complainant, 2NBC's manager, Geoffrey Suranyi, did not direct his complaint against the content of the letters, but rather the fact that the Times failed to give 2NBC adequate notice of the publication of the letters, and that in one instance 2NBC received the letter of complaint after it had already been published. Mr Suranyi complained that the Times had not taken reasonable steps to check the accuracy of what the newspaper printed, and had not sought comment from 2NBC prior to publication. He also claimed that the newspaper had not shown respect for the privacy and sensibilities of the individuals named in the articles.

In correspondence between Mr Suranyi and the newspaper's editor, Zoran Nikolovski, claims and counter-claims were also made concerning the efficacy of 2NBC's mechanism for handling complaints.

the Times offered to publish any response that 2NBC wished to make in relation to the matter. It had published, in the next edition, a lengthy letter from Mr Dimovski, in his role as President of a community sports club, responding to the 2 April letters. Mr Suranyi advised the Times that a response from his organization would be forthcoming, and demanded that its publication be given prominence equivalent to the original articles.

The Press Council's principles call for a newspaper to ensure balance in the material it publishes, but appreciates that it may not always be possible to achieve this in any particular edition. In such circumstances, the Council believes that balance can and should be achieved by the publication, in subsequent editions, of additional material conveying the balancing information or opinion.

The Council notes that, in the case of at least one letter, there was a 24 hour period prior to its publication during which the Times could have explicitly sought a response from 2NBC regarding its contents, or 2NBC could have explicitly sought to respond to the letter it had received. This opportunity was not available in the case of the letter that 2NBC received after it had already been published.

The Council is satisfied that the publication of a response from Mr Dimovski in the next edition of the paper, as well as the newspaper's repeated offer to 2NBC to publish any further response that 2NBC might wish to make, is sufficient to discharge the newspaper's obligation to provide a balanced account of the issues at hand.

On the matter of respect for the privacy and sensibilities of the individual named in the article, the Press Council notes that he is a regular broadcaster on 2NBC and a prominent figure in the Macedonian community in Australia. As such, any criticisms made of him in the press which are directed at his public activities do not warrant the invoking of privacy and sensibility concerns that might apply in circumstances involving his private and personal business.