Standards / Complaints
Complaint decisions
467/2021 – Michelle Edwards and Waltham Forest Echo
Publication: Waltham Forest Echo
Date of complaint: December 20, 2021
Date of adjudication: April 22, 2022
Date complaint accepted: January 25, 2022
Relevant clauses: Accuracy 1.1 of the IMPRESS Standards Code
Outcome:Complaint upheld. Breach of Clause 1.1. Publisher to publish a clarifying statement alongside the original article.

Summary of Complaint

1.1. The Complainant is Michelle Edwards (“the Complainant”), a freelance journalist and directly affected party, who has written several pieces for the Publisher as part of a longstanding column called ‘Life on the Estate’. The Complainant is seeking to ensure the accuracy of a published article, which she had originally submitted to the Publisher for publication.

1.2. The Respondent is Waltham Forest Echo (“the Publisher”), an independent print and online community newspaper that has been regulated by IMPRESS since 14 July 2016.

1.3. The complaint concerns the accuracy of an article that first appeared in the October 2021 issue (no. 79) of Waltham Forest Echo, with the headline “All Along the Watchtower”. The article was subsequently published online on 23 October 2021.

1.4. The complaint is assessed against Clause 1 of the IMPRESS Standards Code