Mayor Joe Anderson has expressed disappointment that the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO) has dismissed his concerns about the appointment of Sun journalist Trevor Kavanagh to its board.
Mr Kavanagh was political editor of the newspaper at the time of the Hillsborough disaster and passed on information which led to the publication of the now entirely discredited ‘Hillsborough: The Truth’ story.
Mayor Anderson describes the decision as “deeply disturbing” and a “staggering error of judgement by an organisation which is supposed to uphold high standards within the industry”.
IPSO has subsequently written back describing his appointment as a “mark of the value and importance that journalists attribute to IPSO” and refused to review his position.
Mayor Anderson said: “I know from my conversations with the Hillsborough families that they believe it is incredibly insensitive to appoint Mr Kavanagh at a time when the reopened inquests are drawing to a close.
“His professional reputation will forever be overshadowed by his part in the publication of that wicked and shameful headline.”
Separately, Mayor Anderson has written to the Chief Executive of Public Health England to say that the city council will not be participating in the upcoming ‘One You’ behavioural change campaign because The Sun is a media partner. You can read his letter here.
Mayor Anderson added: “The people of this city have not forgiven The Sun for the appalling way in which they smeared this city’s reputation and I will not hesitate to remind them of the hurt and damage that they caused.”
