TVJ corrects location in McKenzie pepper-spray coverage after West Kingston MP objects

Radio Jamaica and Television Jamaica have clarified coverage of a pepper-spray incident involving West Kingston Member of Parliament Desmond McKenzie, after the Jamaica Labour Party deputy leader challenged how the story was first told.

Speaking at a JLP meeting the previous evening, McKenzie disputed a Radio Jamaica and TVJ item that, he said, claimed he led more than 200 people onto Darling Street Police Station to intimidate officers and was pepper-sprayed during that confrontation.

In a clarification, the newsrooms said their first accounts reported that the MP was pepper-sprayed near Darling Street Police Station, where a crowd had gathered. They later received information that the episode took place on Bustamante Highway in Tivoli Gardens and revised their reporting accordingly.

They also said none of their stories portrayed McKenzie, who is also a minister, as intimidating police or acting with hostility. The outlets noted that the MP was given four clips in their prime-time news package to present his own account of what happened.

While later reports carried the corrected details, Radio Jamaica and TVJ expressed regret for the initial mistake about where the MP was when the pepper spray was used.