MIKE DILGER AGAINST NEWSHUB

Overview

Newshub published an article on October 9, 2022, headlined Only 27 people turn up for pro-Donald Trump rally at Capital grounds in Washington DC.

The story reported the former president was used to having thousands of people gather at his rallies around the country, but a mere 27 people attended a gathering of supporting in Washington.

Michael Dilger complained the headline breached Media Council Principle 6 (headlines and captions) as it was deceptive.

“I believe most [people will surmise that only 27 people showed up to a Trump-organised rally, when in fact hundreds of thousands of people are showing up to his rallies".

He said the term “pro-Trump” did not distinguish the event from a Trump-organised rally and given that it was not a Trump campaign organised event it was not newsworthy.

The Media Council does not believe a case has been made to support this complaint.

Principle 6 states that headlines should accurately and fairly convey the substance or a key element of the report they are designed to cover. The headline accurately conveyed a key point of the story which reported what happened at a supporters rally in Washington and that the event was not attended or organised by the former president.

As to the publication of the story, news selection is a matter for editorial discretion. That is not a matter for the Media Council to rule on.

Decision: There were insufficient grounds to proceed.