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Members of a news crew in Argentina have lost their jobs after falsely reporting the death of Lionel Messi’s father.
Florencia Peña announced on Luzu TV that Jorge Messi had died and went on to suggest that Messi would not play any further matches in the World Cup. In the aftermath of the report, the Messi family issued a statement on Thursday announcing that Messi Sr was in hospital with an undisclosed medical issue, but was “progressing favourably”.
After the report, Peña resigned from her position and issued an apology to the family, blaming the production crew for feeding incorrect information to her via her earpiece during a live broadcast.
“I apologise to the Messi family for the awful moment I imagine they are going through,” Peña later wrote on social media in Spanish. “I am deeply ashamed to have been the vehicle for this pain. I must clarify that this false information was provided to me during the live broadcast as verified by the production team of the show, and I trusted it.
“Even so, I take responsibility for being part of the mistake, and that’s why I decided to step aside and end my participation in Luzu. I apologise again from the heart; I was wrong.”
Started in 2020, Luzu is a popular source of news in Argentina. It also issued a statement of apology and added that “those responsible” had been relieved of their duties.
“We deeply regret the incident that occurred on air during the programme,” Luzu said in a statement in Spanish. “For our channel, broadcasting sensitive information without proper prior verification is unacceptable. Consequently, Luzu TV management has decided to part ways with all those responsible, and Florencia Peña has decided to step aside. We reaffirm our commitment to responsible, respectful, and rigorous communication.”
According to media reports in Argentina, as many as 10 brands immediately ended their sponsorship of Luzu, a streaming channel.
The Messi family statement took issue with the reporting. “In light of the versions, rumours and speculation that have circulated in recent hours, the family wishes to express their profound discomfort at the lack of sensitivity, respect and scruples with which some individuals have treated a strictly private and family matter,” the statement read, in part.
“The family also wishes to clarify that only their closest family members have real and accurate information about Jorge’s condition. Therefore, any version, statement or information that does not come from the family itself and their corresponding channels should not be considered valid or truthful. In moments like this, we ask for responsibility, prudence and humanity. A person’s health and the peace of mind of those around them should not be the subject of speculation or irresponsible media interest.”
Lionel Messi is participating in his record sixth World Cup. He scored a hat-trick in Argentina’s World Cup opener, a 3-0 win over Algeria on Tuesday in Kansas City. The reigning champions will continue Group J action against Austria on Monday in Arlington, Texas.
Algeria, meanwhile, have sent a letter to Fifa’s refereeing commission about alleged poor refereeing during their 3-0 World Cup defeat by Argentina, with particular reference to the first-half incident when Messi stood on the calf of the Algeria captain, Aïssa Mandi, with the score at 1-0.
Algeria supporters screamed for Messi to be sent off but the forward was not punished and went on to score a hat-trick. The match in Kansas City was refereed by Poland’s Szymon Marciniak, who was in charge of the 2022 World Cup final in Qatar in which Argentina beat France on penalties.
