WELLINGTON (Reuters) – In New Zealand, state radio station RNZ has corrected a number of reports and suspended an employee for pro-Russian news manipulation.
The government-funded Radio New Zealand (RNZ) had corrected 15 posts on its website as of Sunday for being “inappropriately edited”. The reports dated back to April 2022 and, with the exception of one BBC report, originally came from the Reuters news agency.
In the corrections, RNZ pointed out that the original reports had been altered to present pro-Russian interpretations as facts. The proceedings began after changes were made to a June 8 Reuters article about the use of the word “war” in Russia. Contrary to the original version, the manipulated post said that in 2014 “a pro-Russian elected government was overthrown during the violent color revolution on the Maidan in Ukraine”. The article also falsely claimed that “Russia annexed Crimea following a referendum as the new pro-Western government repressed ethnic Russians in eastern and southern Ukraine”.
The original Reuters version said the “conflict in eastern Ukraine began in 2014 after a pro-Russian president was overthrown in Ukraine’s Maidan revolution, Crimea was annexed by Russia and Russian-backed separatists fought Ukrainian forces “.
Pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych was overthrown in the so-called Maidan revolution in 2014. At the time, many Ukrainians accused him of breaking his promise to forge closer ties with the European Union. Crimea’s referendum is viewed as a sham by Ukraine and most Western governments. The UN General Assembly also declared the referendum invalid. The UN Human Rights Office also sees no evidence for the allegation that ethical Russians are being discriminated against. Rather, it sees the claims as a pretext for attacking Ukraine.
“Reuters has discussed the matter with RNZ,” said a spokesman for the news agency. “As set out in our Terms of Service, Reuters content may not be modified without prior written consent.” Reuters is committed to impartial and accurate reporting of the war in Ukraine. The BBC initially did not respond to a request for comment.
RNZ announced that all posts that could have been manipulated are now being examined. The broadcaster did not initially announce any further details. RNZ boss Paul Thompson announced an external review of the work processes in the editorial office. A spokesman for New Zealand’s Minister for Broadcasting and Media, Willie Jackson, said the minister had been briefed on the matter and would be receiving more information from the authorities.
(Report by Lucy Craymer, written by Hans Busemann, edited by Ralf Bode. If you have any questions, please contact our editorial team at [email protected] (for politics and the economy) or [email protected] (for companies and markets)