No
surprise that television news ratings are falling and revenue plummeting when
the Broadcasting Standards Authority allows media to prioritise entertainment
over factual accuracy. The Authority had no concerns over TV3’s gross
misrepresentation of the United Kingdom’s constitutional position in a July 2016
Paul Henry broadcast.
Commentator Paul Henry
embellished his 2016 Independence Day interview with Mark Gilbert, the then
United States ambassador to New Zealand, by referencing US independence from
“England” in 1776, coupling this with comments from Margaret Thatcher as former
prime minister of “England”. One viewer
made a formal complaint to MediaWorks TV Ltd, owner of TV3. The US obtained independence from Great
Britain, not England. Mrs Thatcher was
prime minister of the United Kingdom, not England.
Media Works excused the
inaccuracies as being immaterial in the context of an item about expatriate US
citizens celebrating their national day.
TV3 describes Paul Henry as
being light-hearted and irreverent. An appeal
to the Broadcasting Standards Authority was no more successful. The broadcasting code requires media to make
all reasonable efforts to ensure news and current affairs is “accurate in
relation to all material points of fact.”
The Authority ruled that accuracy is not required for unimportant points
unlikely to affect the audience’s understanding of a broadcast as a whole.
An appeal to the High
Court failed. Appeals are on grounds of
process only; did the Authority follow the right procedures in reaching its
decision? Justice Thomas said it is
clear the Authority considered all relevant evidence put before it. There was no indication that the Authority
has considered any media guidelines for phrases commonly used in a factually
incorrect manner. Without such guidelines
or statements of principle it could not be said the Authority had departed from
them.
The court was told
MediaWorks has issued new guidelines to journalists over correct reference to
the United Kingdom and to Great Britain.
Lowes
v. Mediaworks TV – High Court (29.05.17)
17.056