Adjudication No. 1302 (adjudicated October 2005) [2005] APC 35

Adjudication No. 1302 (adjudciated October 2005)

The Australian Press Council has upheld in part complaints against the Fraser Coast Chronicle over reports involving long-standing differences between a local organisation known as the Access for All Alliance and the Hervey Bay City Council.

The differences concern facilities for the disabled, apparently mainly wheelchair users, at bus stops, on beaches, and in toilets. In addition, the nature of various court actions is also in question.

The details cover such things as the number of seats in a bus shelter compared with the spaces provided for wheelchairs; the percentage of tables in a park allowing wheelchair access; the paths to shelters and beaches.

In a Page 1 report the paper claimed that $60,000 would be needed to modify the bus shelters, alone, to fit the set standards, and further reports on inside pages cited other costs incurred and foreseen.

The paper quoted the Alliance as saying that it has warned the Hervey Bay Council of the standards and the need to meet them ... "We're just pointing out what is correct".

The complainants, Bob and Glenise Staff, both members of the Alliance, also say that of two letters sent to the paper only one was published, and then cut by more than 50 per cent.

In reply the paper says it published information provided by Hervey Bay Council, it did not "deliberately print untrue, misleading or distorted information". The Alliance, it says, "has a confrontational rather than a conciliatory style", and only one letter was received and published.

The Press Council upholds in part because there were inaccuracies and some failure of attribution in the reports. With regard to the published letter, the Alliance's concerns with the newspaper's reporting were preserved in the letter even if it was cut in the editorial process. This part of the complaint is dismissed.