Seven slapped over accuracy in Sunrise news item

Seven has breached broadcast accuracy rules for a report aired on Sunrise that claimed a motorbike rider ‘deliberately rode off a footpath and into a 13-year-old girl’.

In September 2020 Sunrise reported on a collision about a NSW motorcycle accident in which it claimed a young motorbike rider “deliberately rode off a footpath and into a 13-year-old girl, knocking her to the ground.” The incident footage comprised dashcam footage.

A complaint to the Australian Communications and Media Authority questioned whether the word “deliberately” was fair given the rider had not been apprehended, and how it arrived at their intent.

Seven defended “the ordinary reasonable viewer would interpret the statement during the report to mean that the motorcyclist deliberately rode onto the footpath, and then deliberately rode off the footpath and onto the road, hitting the victim in the process of riding off the footpath and onto the road.”

But ACMA found the flow of the statement and the use of the conjunction ‘and’ conveyed to the audience that the action of riding off the footpath (and onto the road) and hitting the girl were associated with each other, not only by the sequence in which they occurred, but also by the deliberate intent behind them.

It ruled this a breach of accuracy and fairness. Under the Commercial Television Industry Code of Practice broadcasters are required to present factual material accurately in news and current affairs programs, ensuring that viewpoints are not misrepresented.

ACMA chair Nerida O’Loughlin said, “Audiences should be able to trust that information presented in news reports is factually accurate and has been properly verified. It is disappointing that Seven reported the collision as deliberate without sufficient supporting evidence.”

Seven agreed the investigation report would be provided to Sunrise staff and they would be reminded of their obligations under the Code regarding accuracy. Seven will also include the decision in future Code training sessions with staff.

The same news item also appeared in primetime bulletins.