The News and Jang regret false attribution to the Foreign Office

 JournalismPakistan.com |  Published: 18 November 2024 |  JP Staff Report

The News has apologized for misattributing comments to the Foreign Office in a recent article. The Foreign Office rejected the claims and emphasized the need for accurate reporting.

Summary

ISLAMABAD—The News has issued a formal regret over the publication of a story that falsely attributed comments to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Foreign Office on Sunday rejected the story, which was also carried by Jang, in which the ministry's spokesperson was quoted as calling a letter from US Congress members to President Joe Biden—urging the release of former Prime Minister Imran Khan—an "exercise in futility."

In a statement, the Foreign Office clarified, "We reject the story attributed to the Foreign Office published in today's The News International and Jang." The statement further noted that the ministry would address the matter with the editors of the newspapers regarding their editorial standards and journalistic ethics.

The Foreign Office emphasized the importance of verifying information before attributing comments to official sources. "We advise the media to seek confirmation from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs before publishing stories attributed to them. We also urge the media to refrain from propagating this false story further," the statement added.

In response, The News published a corrigendum on Monday, expressing regret over the publication of the erroneous report titled 'FO Dismisses Letter by US Congressmen to Biden as 'Exercise in Futility' by Muhammad Saleh Zaafir.