A COMPLAINT by the Catholic Communications Office against the Sunday Timeshas not been upheld by the Press Ombudsman.
Martin Long, director of the Catholic Communications Office, complained about an article on Padre Pio written by Liam Fay and published in the Sunday Timeson April 27th last.
He claimed the article was in breach of the following principles of the code of practice: truth and accuracy; distinguishing fact and comment; respect for rights; and incitement to hatred. He also complained of the newspaper's refusal to publish a letter from him setting out the views of his office on the article, and requested publication of a retraction and an apology.
The newspaper defended publication of the article on the grounds it was clearly an opinion piece and identified as such by the word "Comment" printed prominently above it. It said Mr Long's letter to the editor covered the same ground as other writers, and that it was the policy of the Sunday Timesto give preference to letters from ordinary readers rather than to letters from official sources.
The Press Ombudsman decided that Mr Long had provided no evidence to support his contention that either principles (i) or (ii) had been breached. Nor was there evidence that the article involved the knowing publication of matter based on malicious misrepresentation or unfounded accusations, which would be required to support a complaint about a breach of principle (iv). He said Mr Long's letter to the newspaper, and letters printed by it the week after the article was published, were clear evidence that the article caused offence to some readers.
But, he continued that, when deciding whether a breach of principle (viii) had taken place, a balance had to be struck between a newspaper's right to advocate strongly its own views and the degree of offence that published material is intended or likely to cause to an individual or group.
The Press Ombudsman concluded that, in this particular case, the undoubted offence generated by the article in question was not of the gravity required to support a complaint under principle (viii) of the code of practice.