Adjudication No. 1450  (adjudicated December 2009)

The Press Council has upheld a complaint against the magazine Famous for digitally altering images of the two main stars of the Twilight films - then refusing publicly to acknowledge what it had done.

The celebrity magazine, on the cover of its September 21 issue, took separate photographs of actors Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart and produced a digitally altered image that purported to show the couple in a close embrace. The accompanying headline read You won't keep us apart.

The editor-in-chief apologised to the complainant for failing adequately to caption, disclose or credit the use of the digitally altered image, saying the omission was an oversight on the part of his team.

He said the image was not intended to deceive readers, but was presented "to illustrative in print purposes only". However the magazine refused to acknowledge that the photos had been digitally altered.

Instead it offered $3.50 - the cost of a copy of the magazine - to the complainant to compensate "for her hurt and suffering". The complainant, who describes herself as "a big Twilight fan", declined to accept the money.

The Press Council believes a publication that uses a significantly altered image that purports to illustrate the news should clearly disclose the fact of that alteration.

The complainant was previously employed by the Press Council, and is now employed by a rival magazine publisher, but complained in her private capacity. The Council does not believe her past or current employment was relevant.

[ return to top ]

Documents with the icon require the Acrobat Reader, a Free Utility from Adobe. Click here for more information.