(Credit: Public Domain Pictures)
Earlier this year, the UK Express apologized to New Zealand billionaire Christopher Chandler after having wrongly reported that he was a Russian tycoon who helped Vladimir Putin take control of Russian energy company Gazprom, as iMediaEthics reported.
But the Express’s apology isn’t the only one that Chandler has received from UK media this year.
Since the Express’s apology, both The Financial Times and the Guardian updated their reporting on Chandler, correcting errors. The Guardian had claimed Chandler was a Brexiter (in favor of Brexit, or England leaving the European Union). Both news outlets also claimed that Chandler acquired Maltese citizenship after Brexit.
The Guardian published a Feb. 28 apology to Chandler for “a number of inaccuracies” including the claim Chandler was “a hypocrite over Brexit.” In response to the apology, the investment firm Chandler founded, Legatum, said in a statement on its website in part, “This apology is the latest in a series of corrections and retractions by leading publications which we have persuaded to acknowledge the truth, and which have ultimately done the right thing by retracting inaccurate and scurrilous articles about Legatum and its partners.”
iMediaEthics wrote to the Guardian to ask if Chandler sued and if any financial settlement was made; a spokesperson for the Guardian declined to comment.
The Feb. 28 apology reads:
“An opinion piece (Brexiters don’t mind freedom of movement –as long as you’re rich enough to pay for it – 31 January 2018, Zoe Williams) contained a number of inaccuracies. Christopher Chandler is not a Brexiter. Mr. Chandler’s application for Maltese citizenship was made before the Brexit process was commenced and was not motivated by the “leave” outcome of the EU membership referendum. The suggestion that Mr. Chandler is a hypocrite over Brexit was unjustified, and we are happy to apologise and set the record straight.”
The Financial Times published a print and online clarification about its Jan. 28 reporting on Chandler’s application for Maltese citizenship. iMediaEthics has written to the Financial Times.
The clarification reads:
“Clarification: The applications by Christopher Chandler and Mark Stoleson for Maltese citizenship were made in August and July 2015, respectively, and were not prompted by the result of the Brexit referendum in June 2016.”
