Cape Town - The Press Ombudsman has reprimanded the Daily Voice for stating the assumption in a front-page headline as fact that tik had been used at the Salt River High School.
Principal Russell Bell lodged a complaint with the Ombudsman about a story and its headlines published on 28 July 2015 (School of tik – Voice busts pupils smoking drugs, and Smoked out).
Ombudsman Johan Retief said it seemed to him that the use of drugs at the school – as reported in the story – was not in question, as Bell has had the chance to refute the allegation but did not do so.
He noted that the only remaining issue was the kind of drug that had been used, and whether the Daily Voice were justified in stating as fact in the headline that it had been tik.
Retief declares: “Given the testimony of the deputy chairman of the Woodstock Community Policing Forum, it probably was reasonable to assume that the substance was tik.
“However, that was still an assumption (as it could have been dagga, or another kind of substance).
“This is contrary to the Press Code that says a headline should reasonably reflect the content of a story. A newspaper is not justified to state an allegation as fact in a headline.
“I also take into account that tik is a far more dangerous substance than dagga, which means that there is a possibility that the headline could have caused the school some unnecessary harm.”
Retief dismissed the complaint about the story itself, including that care was not taken when reporting on children.
“I appreciate the fact that the newspaper did blur the faces of the children, and believe it was indeed in the public interest to report the matter,” he found.
For the full finding by the Ombudsman, visit www.presscouncil.org.za.
Daily Voice