It prompted a formal complaint to the Media Council from Hinton\u2019s own daughter, Pauline Davies, who described the article\u2019s approach as sensationalist and tabloid. <\/p>\n
The family of Hinton, as the article also reported, had gone to some length to defend their late relative in the past, including setting up a website \u2013 now no longer active \u2013 to clear his name.<\/p>\n
Hinton had previously been named in media reports, and in January 2012, police used excavators to drill into the floor of a Kawerau property where he lived in the 1970s.<\/p>\n
Police came up with nothing and closed their inquiries into Moller\u2019s claims. <\/p>\n
The Daily Post story repeated earlier media reports \u2013 sourced from documents released under the Official Information Act \u2013 that Moller had also accused Hinton of being involved in the unsolved murder of Tracey Ann Patient whose body was found in the Waitakere Ranges in 1976. <\/p>\n
Both cold cases remain open. According to the Daily Post article and other reports, more than 500 suspects, many of whom owned orange Datsuns \u2013 a car that police believe was central to the Blades case \u2013 were investigated in relation to her disappearance.<\/p>\n
Media Council ruling<\/p>\n
The Media Council today found the Daily Post article was accurate and balanced but \u2013 by a majority of 6-4 \u2013 said it was unfair.<\/p>\n
The council said the article went into \u201csignificant\u201d details of the allegations made by Moller against Hinton.<\/p>\n
Former Kawerau Sergeant Tony Moller (seated) talks to Senior Sergeant Mark van der Kley as the excavation of a floor in a Kawerau house takes place in January 2012. Nothing was found.<\/p>\n
\u201cNaming previous persons of interest and publishing unsubstantiated theories around their connection to the disappearance is, in certain circumstances, unfair,\u201d said the council.<\/p>\n
\u201cRegardless of whether the article labels it as a theory, it still heightens the speculation around their involvement. The impact that this has on people that were not charged, and in this case, their families, is understandably distressing.\u201d<\/p>\n
It said it could be legitimate, in certain circumstances, for the media to keep cold cases alive and to refer to suspects. <\/p>\n
\u201cThere is certainly no rule against that if there is some factual basis for a suspect to be named, such as a previous charge or statement by the police that the person was a suspect,\u201d said the Media Council.<\/p>\n
\u201cHowever, this article was deeply unfair to Mr Hinton and his family.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe is named as the object of one man\u2019s discredited and unsubstantiated theory, and this is compounded by reference to him having yet another theory about Mr Hinton committing a second terrible crime.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn these particular circumstances, it was unfair to name Mr Hinton as the subject of those theories and cause grief to his family.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs we have stated, the unsolved murder and Mr Moller\u2019s regret could all have been referred to without stating the name of Mr Hinton. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe article could still have referred to Mr Moller and the Mona Blades case without naming Mr Hinton. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt was therefore the unnecessary naming of him on the flimsy and entirely unsubstantiated theory of one deceased man which was unfair, and which warrants an uphold.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Media Council said there were no breaches of its principles in regards to headlines\/captions and photographs\/graphics.<\/p>\n
Media Council dissent<\/p>\n
The members of the Media Council are a mix of lay people and media representatives and it is chaired by retired Court of Appeal judge Raynor Asher KC.<\/p>\n
Those who upheld the decision on the basis of the story being unfair were Asher, Marie Shroff, Reina Vaai, Ben France-Hudson, Richard Pamatatau and Judi Jones.<\/p>\n
Another council member, Scott Inglis, did not take part in the decision for conflict reasons \u2013 he works for NZME.<\/p>\n
In a written \u201cdissent\u201d, four members of the council \u2013 Tim Watkin, Rosemary Barraclough, Guy MacGibbon and Hank Schouten \u2013 said reviewing cold cases was common place and \u201censures victims, such as Mona Blades, and unsolved cases are not forgotten\u201d.<\/p>\n
Mona Blades. Photo \/ Supplied to Daily Post<\/p>\n
\u201cWhile we sympathise with the distress felt by the complainant and her family, we believe ruling the article is unfair under Media Council principles goes too far,\u201d they said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt sends a worrying signal to newsrooms that they cannot fairly report on unproven crime theories or use details already on the public record. <\/p>\n
\u201cJournalists are rightly taught to be as precise as possible in their reporting. Mr Hinton\u2019s name and the theory of his involvement in Mona Blades\u2019 disappearance have been widely reported and is even on the Mona Blades Wikipedia page. <\/p>\n
\u201cMr Moller\u2019s theory was taken seriously by police. It has become part of the story of an investigation into a crime that remains tragically unsolved. <\/p>\n
\u201cIn that context, it was fair to repeat details of Mr Moller\u2019s theory, including Mr Hinton\u2019s name. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe were also influenced by the fact the feature was not inaccurate, other unproven theories were also discussed, and the article clearly said Mr Moller\u2019s theory was unproven and criticised.\u201d<\/p>\n
They said the public could be \u201cleft to make up its own mind as to its reliability without the council acting as gatekeeper\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe complainant was offered the opportunity to comment and the potential of a follow-up story. She declined both. Ultimately, it\u2019s in the public interest for news media to report on cold cases. Podcast and magazines are full of such reporting, including re-examining unproven theories. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe disagree with the majority that this example of everyday journalism falls short of Media Council standards.\u201d<\/p>\n
NZME responds<\/p>\n
Under Media Council rules, a summary of an upheld decision has to be published by the website\/newspaper that published the original article. <\/p>\n