Media warned over their reporting of mushroom murder trial
Niche news website Crikey, female-focused masthead Mamamia, Channel 10 and a popular mummy blogger have been warned about elements of their reporting of Erin Patterson’s murder trial.
Niche news website Crikey, female-focused masthead Mamamia, Channel 10 and a popular mummy blogger have been warned about elements of their reporting of Erin Patterson’s murder trial.
Each outlet has amended aspects of their online coverage after they were made aware that they had either breached court-ordered suppression orders relating to the case, or engaged in commentary or reporting that may have been inappropriate.
The offending story by Crikey was about the “media circus” surrounding the trial, however the sketch-style piece backfired spectacularly when the author flagrantly breached a suppression order. The article was subsequently amended online, although the change wasn’t mentioned anywhere on the Crikey website.
Crikey did not respond to inquiries from The Australian on Thursday.
Renowned Australian mummy blogger and social media influencer Constance Hall revealed she had also been told to remove a post she shared with her more than 1.3 million followers on Facebook this week.
“FYI you guys, I had to remove the post about the mushroom trial because I received an email from the Vic government telling me to immediately delete it and that numerous comments on the post breached ‘the principles of sub justice [sic] contempt’,” she told her legion of fans – who she refers to as “Queens” – on Wednesday evening.
Ms Hall went on to explain she was unaware of the sub judice rule and that she thought the contents of her post had been in line with what was being published by professional media organisations.
“I’m not quite sure what (sub judice) means but it sounded legit,” she said.
“Before I wrote (the post), I made sure media was reporting on (the trial) and leaving comments on and they did.
“But it’s not exactly surprising that me and my Queens broke the rules without even knowing it so I wasn’t about to f..k around.
“Ahh well after the trial we shall discuss.”
The trial continues.
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