Complaint
A listener complained that inaccuracies he had pointed out in correspondence with the programme had not been appropriately corrected.Β The ECU considered the complaint in the light of the ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔβs Editorial Guidelines on Accuracy.
Outcome
The inaccuracies arose in an interview about horse-racing in which the interviewee said 600 child riders had died the previous year in the Mongol Derby. When challenged by the presenter she altered her claim, stating that 600 children had been injured and 170 killed β but this too was inaccurate, as pointed out by the complainant.Β On 28 October 2019 the programme broadcast a correction in these terms:
First of all, though, Iβve got to apologise, because two weeks ago we ran a story about the number of children who died taking part in horse races in Mongolia. The figure quoted was 170.Β That number actually referred to the number of children injured in 2017.Β So I apologise.Β In that year, 2017, two children were killed according to figures from Mongoliaβs National Traumatology and Orthopedics Research Centre. I do apologise for this inaccuracy.
The complainant considered this inadequate because the interviewee in the 14 October broadcast had referred to βlast yearβ, which might have been understood to be 2018, and because it included no reference to the inaccurate figure for injuries given by the interviewee.Β Noting that the 2017 figures were the most recent available at the time and that the correction gave the correct figures for both injuries and fatalities, the ECU judged that the broadcast correction was sufficient to remedy the original inaccuracies and to resolve the issues of complaint.
Resolved