Complaint
A report about Haitian immigrants to the United States included this statement:
  As migrants attempted to cross from Mexico to a makeshift camp in Texas this week, they were pushed back byÂ
   mounted Border Patrol officers using whips.
A viewer complained that the claim that whips had been used was false.  The ECU considered the complaint in the light of the ´óÏó´«Ã½â€™s editorial standards of due accuracy.
Outcome
Reports on social media and news media that Border Patrol officers had used whips were based on photographs taken by an agency photographer who subsequently stated that he had not seen whips being used at the time. Moreover the Department of Homeland Security, which is responsible for border control, stated on 20 September that the images showed long reins used to control horses – an explanation entirely compatible with the images themselves. In view of these points, the ECU agreed that the report’s claim about the use of whips was not consistent with the ´óÏó´«Ã½â€™s standards of due accuracy.
Upheld
Further action
The finding was reported to the Board of ´óÏó´«Ã½ News and discussed with the programme-makers concerned.