THE press watchdog is accused of stifling free speech after ruling against the reporting of evidence heard in open court.
The Independent Press Standards Organisation found details of a rape trial had been an “intrusion into grief” of the anonymous victim.
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The woman told Ipso a “detailed description of her physical reaction to the attack” in the online article had “retraumatised her”.
Ipso said it recognised court reporting is “an essential part of open justice” but found the report contained an “unnecessary level of detail”.
Campaigners have warned the ruling may hamper the right of journalists to report on criminal cases.
Aberdeen Live was ordered to run a correction.
Nazir Afzal, on Ipso’s complaints committee for six years, said: “There is a danger this outcome will stifle the public interest in accurate court reporting.”
In 2015 the regulator ruled the Gravesend News Shopper failed to comply with the Editors’ Code of Practice with an “emotive description” of a suicide inquest.
An Ipso spokesman said: “This was an unusual case.
“The committee concluded the article contained details which went beyond reporting of the crime which, in this particular case, were not justified.”
