A Man and the Evening Herald

The Press Ombudsman has decided that the publication of a photograph in the Evening Herald in March 2013, about which a complaint was made, was not a breach of the Code of Practice for Newspapers and Magazines.

A man complained that in the photograph, which was one of him pushing his car through a flood, both he and the registration number of his car were clearly identifiable. He complained that as the photograph had been taken without his permission (which he said he would not have given, if asked), it was an invasion of his privacy under Principles 5.1 and 5.3 of the Code of Practice, and had exploited his personal distress for financial gain.

The newspaper said that there had been no intention to cause distress by the publication of the photograph, which reflected a major public event - an exceptional rainstorm - and was of a public place.

Private individuals caught up in newsworthy events frequently find themselves also involved or depicted in media coverage of these events, sometimes to their discomfiture.   Such coverage might, in certain limited and very specific circumstances, present a potential breach of the Code of Practice.     However, while acknowledging that the complainant found the publication of his photograph extremely unwelcome and intrusive, it would be unreasonable, in the circumstances of this particular case, to conclude that it amounted to a breach of Principle 5 of the Code.    

The Press Ombudsman noted an undertaking by the newspaper to remove the image concerned from its picture library and to ensure that it would not be republished.

9 July 2013