The Australian Communications and Media Authority has found that Channel Seven Adelaide made inaccurate and unfair claims about an online flower delivery business, Bloomex, and ordered the network to take corrective steps.
In a statement, the ACMA said it had found that the channel's Today Tonight programme had misrepresented comments made by the NSW Fair Trading Commissioners in March.
The programme incorrectly reported that the Commissioner had issued a public warning about Bloomex, when he had instead only spoken about online flower sellers in general and mentioned that there were complaints about Bloomex.
The investigation found the report failed to present factual material accurately, breaching clause 3.3.1 of the Commercial Television Industry Code of Practice.
{loadposition sam08}"The Code requires that licensees present factual material accurately in broadcasting news and current affairs programmes. They must also ensure viewpoints included in the programme are not misrepresented," said ACMA chair Nerida O’Loughlin.
"This breach is an important reminder to broadcasters of their responsibilities to not distort statements made by third parties."
There were several other allegations of inaccuracy but these were found not to breach the Code.
The statement said the ACMA and Seven Adelaide had agreed on actions to avoid future breaches, including using the decision in future Code training for staff. Seven Adelaide has also corrected the material on its Today Tonight website.