Angling Times: derogatory term
A reporter working for Emap’s fishing weekly, Angling Times, has been suspended on full pay for inserting an "inappropriate" slang word which resulted in the paper being recalled and distributed a day late.
The incident involved a feature on the Disabled World Fishing Championships. The page was laid out on a Sunday night and, while staff waited for winners’ names to come in, a junior reporter inserted a derogatory word for the disabled into the copy.
A source said the subs were not familiar with the term and assumed it was the name of a sponsor. It was not until the fully printed version landed on the newsdesk the following day that the word was actually queried.
A statement from Angling Times, which has a print run of 85,000, said: "Unfortunately, several hundred copies of the original newspaper did reach the shops but all were immediately recalled and replaced. As a result the title was distributed a day late." Peter Thompson, director of the British Disabled Angling Association, said: "I have been fully informed of what happened. It is an unfortunate incident and seems to be the result of a young person’s naivety.
"Disabled fishermen in this country have benefited from the fundraising activities of the Angling Times and our organisation does not intend to blow this incident out of proportion." A staffer on Angling Times claimed the team was relatively new to the Sunday shift, as the publication date had only just been brought forward. A full internal inquiry has been mounted and the reporter has been suspended.
By Ruth Addicott
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