Location: England
Date: January 22, 2021

Robyn Vinter, an investigative journalist and contributor to The Yorkshire Post, faced online intimidation and criticism from several Tory MPs, including Nadhim Zahawi and Nigel Adams. The officials targeted Robyn for her story on the problematic Covid vaccine distribution in the region. Government representatives called the report inaccurate and publicly termed it as false and dangerous. The NHS director, Dr. Nikki Kanani, confirmed to BBC that Robyn Vinter’s piece was, in fact, based on findings depicting the problems with the vaccine rollout.

Investigative journalist Robyn Vinter received criticism from Tory MPs after reporting that Yorkshire-allocated Covid vaccines were being redirected to other regions. The journalist’s work on the story was deemed false and dangerous by Tory MPs Nadhim Zahawi, Simon Clark and Alec Shelbrooke, who denied the claims.

Robyn Vinter shared a screenshot of her story on her Twitter account in a series of tweets captioned, “Oh god, here we go. I absolutely knew the Tories were up to something and this is it. Nowhere did the story say vaccines are being ‘diverted from north to south’. The front page is RIGHT HERE, I cannot make it any clearer”

The journalist revealed she spent hours researching the story, adding that many credible sources contributed to the information. She also said that it is hard to deal with intimidation when you know you have done your research and gave it your all. Robyn said that she received a lot of support after the Tory MPs discredited her work. 

In response to Tory MP Zahawi, James Mitchinson, an editor for The Yorkshire Post, replied, “With respect, I don’t believe your percentages reflect what’s happening, and I trust my team more than I trust you.” Mitchinson also wrote a detailed story addressing the readers to explain how the story was based on research and findings. He thanked the NHS's top GP, Dr. Nikki Kanani, for confirming the facts. 

The Coalition For Women In Journalism condemns the intimidating behavior of government representatives towards a journalist. Robyn was merely doing her job as a journalist to report pertinent information in the public’s interest. We urge Tory representatives to reconsider their approach before targeting women journalists in the future. The press should not be intimidated nor chastised for reporting facts and findings.

The CFWIJ strongly condemns the police brutality against journalists. We demand the immediate return of the press cards seized from the security forces. Policies to intimidate journalists should be abandoned, and journalism should be practiced under the criteria of freedom of the press.

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