ABC News yesterday reprimanded reporter John Stossel and suspended producer David Fitzpatrick for one month for their roles in a “20/20” report that questioned the safety and benefits of organic food, two days after the network acknowledged that the story contained false information. The report, broadcast in February and rerun in July, claimed that tests conducted for the network indicated that non-organic produce does not necessarily have more pesticide residue than organic produce, but in fact the tests were never conducted. Stossel has also been ordered to apologize on the air on this Friday’s “20/20,” a correction that may run several minutes, an unusually long time, which would seem to be an acknowledgement by ABC that the segment harmed the organic food industry, as critics have claimed. The Environmental Working Group, which has called for Stossel to be fired over the incident, said the punishments aren’t strong enough.
