Complaints Report: 2007

• ANCHELL VS PEACH ARCH NEWS

ANCHELL VS PEACH ARCH NEWS

The B.C. Press Council has dismissed a complaint filed against the Peace Arch News over publication of a story in its edition of Nov. 2, 2007.

During the Feb. 29, 2008 hearing, complainant Larry Anschell cited Sections 1,2 and 4 of the Council’s Code of Practice.

The story in question, written by Peace Arch News reporter Alan Campbell, was a narrative-style news story depicting Anschell’s dealings with White Rock city council and officials in connection with a property that Anschell wanted to develop.
Regarding Section 1, Accuracy, Anschell testified the story included six quotes attributed to him that he said were incorrect.

Regarding Section 2, Opportunity to Reply, Anschell testified that he was offered an opportunity to reply but could not accept the publication conditions of a letter to the editor, which include the newspaper’s right to edit the letter.
Regarding Section 4, Comment and Fact, Anschell testified that he believed the story was, in fact, not a narrative which is storytelling based on fact, but was instead dramatization, or a fictional story based on true events.

The Complainant sought a published apology or retraction.

The Council found that there was no breach of Section 1, basing its decision on the testimony of reporter Alan Campbell, as well as the accuracy of Campbell’s shorthand notes, transcribed and provided as evidence, of his interview with Anschell.

The Council’s decision was also based on testimony from the newspaper’s photographer, who recalled hearing some of the disputed quotes during the interview, and testimony from the Complainant himself who admitted to some of the language in the disputed quotes.

The Council found there was no breach of Section 2 of the code, based on testimony from the Peach Arch News that the Complainant was offered the opportunity to reply as set out above, but declined.

The Council found there was no breach of Section 4 of the code because the Peace Arch News testified the article was purposefully written as a narrative and, as such, related the story as it unfolded over time in an effort to recreate a sense of the emotions and understanding inherent in a developer’s dealing with municipal government.

For these reasons the Council hereby dismisses the complaint, but notes that the narrative style of news reporting in newspapers can leave confusion in the minds of readers, especially in areas such as municipal politics, the reporting of which is usually done in a more basic style. In particular the practice of quoting remarks made in situations at which the reporter was not present can provoke confusion and may lead to misunderstandings.

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