View all newsletters
Sign up for our free email newsletters

Fighting for quality news media in the digital age.

  1. News
June 18, 2020updated 30 Sep 2022 9:24am

Mail publisher pays damages to Palestinian centre over libel in book serialisation

By Charlotte Tobitt

Mail publisher Associated Newspapers has paid substantial damages over a “grotesque” libel made against a non-profit Palestinian refugee group in its serialisation of a Jeremy Corbyn biography.

The Mail on Sunday and Mail Online ran extracts from investigative biographer and ex-Panorama reporter Tom Bower’s book Dangerous Hero about the former Labour leader (pictured) in February 2019.

The book, and one of the serialised extracts, contained the claim that the UK-based Palestinian Return Centre  was “known to blame the Jews for the Holocaust”.

Carter-Ruck, representing the PRC, said the “grotesque but utterly false” allegation had come from the misreporting in the media of comments made by a member of the audience at an event hosted by the PRC at the House of Lords in 2016.

The PRC publicly condemned the comments after the event.

Carter-Ruck announced today that Associated Newspapers has paid substantial damages and costs to PRC after it published a correction and apology in March.

Harper Collins and Bower have already withdrawn the contentious passage, explaining that the author had relied on a contemporaneous newspaper report of the incident that had not been amended or corrected.

Content from our partners
Unified solution offers publishers unrivalled print and digital efficiency
How DPG Media invested in print technology to help it focus on digital
How to make sure you are social media ready for job hunting

The claim will not appear in the paperback or any other future editions of Bower’s book.

 

Picture: Reuters/Hannah McKay

Email pged@pressgazette.co.uk to point out mistakes, provide story tips or send in a letter for publication on our "Letters Page" blog

Select and enter your email address Weekly insight into the big strategic issues affecting the future of the news industry. Essential reading for media leaders every Thursday. Your morning brew of news about the world of news from Press Gazette and elsewhere in the media. Sent at around 10am UK time. Our weekly dose of strategic insight about the future of news media aimed at US readers. A fortnightly update from the front-line of news and advertising. Aimed at marketers and those involved in the advertising industry.
  • Business owner/co-owner
  • CEO
  • COO
  • CFO
  • CTO
  • Chairperson
  • Non-Exec Director
  • Other C-Suite
  • Managing Director
  • President/Partner
  • Senior Executive/SVP or Corporate VP or equivalent
  • Director or equivalent
  • Group or Senior Manager
  • Head of Department/Function
  • Manager
  • Non-manager
  • Retired
  • Other
Visit our privacy Policy for more information about our services, how Progressive Media Investments may use, process and share your personal data, including information on your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications.
Thank you

Thanks for subscribing.

Websites in our network