Determination
38
Minnesota
News Council
In the Matter of the Complaint of
Regina's Fine Candies against the Mpls Tribune
Regina's Fine Candies, St. Paul, complained
that a taste survey of chocolates was unscientific and unfair to Regina's
and to the U.S. chocolate industry.
Background: On May 10, 1979,
the newspaper published a Thursday Food section story on Mother's
Day chocolates. The reporter assembled "eight of the most serious
chocolate lovers" - all unnamed - for a "blind tasting"
of chocolate products from six Twin Cities candy stores, including
Regina's. The tasters rated one-pound candy assortments and solid
chocolates on a numerical scale for "taste, freshness, texture
and overall appearance." Regina's candies were ranked fifth by
the tasters, in part because they criticized the company's chocolates
for being waxy.
Calling the rating system unscientific,
Regina's complained that the paper failed to identify the tasters
or their qualifications, or to explain adequately the tasting method.
The test results were skewed, Regina's claimed, because the tasting
of solid chocolates was based on a commercial coating the company
buys for resale but does not use in its manufactured assortments.
Criticism of the chocolate as "waxy" was also misleading,
Regina's said, since wax is not used in chocolates and Regina's does
not use compounds or stretchers. Lastly, Regina's complained that
the article was unfair to the candy industry as a whole because it
contained several unsupported statements that indicated a general
decline in the quality of American candy.
Regina's contacted the paper's reader's
representative and asked that a correction or clarification of the
article be printed. The paper did not feel that such a response was
warranted.
Response of the news organization:
The paper said the article was clearly labeled as a blind tasting,
distinguishing it from a scientific survey. The newspaper likened
the article to a traditional restaurant or wine review, with the tasters
acting as reviewers. The paper also said that use of the term "waxy"
did not mean Regina's chocolate contained wax, but was like wax in
that it did not melt quickly. Although the paper acknowledged that
its reporter had purchased a non-Regina's product for the tasting
of solid chocolates, it said the mix-up occurred because of poor package
labeling. Finally, the paper said its overall coverage of the candy
industry was balanced inasmuch as it had published other articles
favorable to Regina's and the local candy industry.
Determination of the Council:
The article appeared to be based on a scientific survey; the paper
should have clarified the tasting methodology to its readers and identified
the tasters and their qualifications. The reader's representative
himself, in a column published May 27 in the paper, said: "The
failure of the judging method was that it masqueraded as science.
It lumped the subjective judgments of unnamed people with unknown
qualifications into an ostensibly objective number measurement of
an unregulated mixture of ill-defined characteristics."
The newspaper should have published
a clarification when Regina's informed it that its reporter had purchased
the wrong product for the tasting of solid chocolates. Additional
clarification was in order because characterizing Regina's chocolate
as "waxy" may have misled readers to believe that the company
adds compounds or stretchers to its chocolate coating.
On the whole, the article should be
characterized as consumer reporting rather than as a restaurant or
wine review. In those types of reviews, the reviewer is identified
and his or her qualifications are generally known to the reader; also,
a numerical rating system is not used.
Finally, the paper's overall coverage
of the candy industry cannot be regarded as fair in view of the other
articles it cites. Previous or concurrent coverage that may balance
the overall coverage does not obviate the responsibility to be accurate
and thorough in each article.
The complaint against the newspaper
is upheld.
June 1, 1979
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Determination 39
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