Reuters kills stories after reporter arranged press accreditation for anti-doping official

Reuters has killed two stories about an athletics doping dispute after learning one of its journalists had enabled an official of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) to obtain accreditation in its name for a major golf tournament.

In a statement, Reuters said the journalist involved had left the agency, without giving details. Sources told The Baron that the person had been based in North America.

In a statement accompanying the kills (withdrawals) of the stories, the agency said: “While Reuters stands by the accuracy of the reporting, a post-publication investigation determined that Reuters standards for newsgathering were not met, specifically as they pertain to avoiding the appearance of bias in our sourcing.”

The London Times, which broke the story said Reuters took action after it told them of its report. The two stories withdrawn concerned a long running dispute between WADA and the U.S. anti-doping organisation USADA over tactics in combatting drug taking in athletics.

A Reuters statement said: “A journalist who no longer works for Reuters has acknowledged that they helped a representative of WADA obtain a Reuters press credential for the 2024 Masters tournament, a violation of our journalistic standards.” The tournament was held in Augusta in April.

The Times said the official given the press pass was WADA’s media chief James Fitzgerald. It quoted him as saying: “My attendance at that event in April was unconnected to my role at WADA and was a personal matter. All related costs were paid for entirely by me and I was there on my own time.” He said WADA did not generate the stories withdrawn by Reuters but had responded to reporters’ enquiries.

The Times said Reuters managers were unaware of the accreditation before being told about it by the newspaper. ■