BP removes doctored photos from oil spill site

By Tom Bergin

LONDON, July 23 (Reuters) - BP (BP.L: Quote) said it had removed doctored photographs of its oil spill response effort from its website blaming a "simple error" that analysts said would do further damage to the oil giant's already battered credibility.

BP published a photograph of a helicopter near the spill site, which had been altered to give the impression the aircraft was in flight and to give a clearer view of vessels working on the relief effort.

The London-based company also posted a photograph of its Houston control room which had been amended to fill blank screens in front of workers, with images of subsea equipment.

BP said an "overenthusiastic" photographer had breached the company's procedures and had been warned not to so again.

"There was no attempt to make significant changes. It was purley cosmetic," BP's head of press Andrew Gowers said.

BP has published copies of the original and doctored images on Flickr. here

However, the move has further diminished BP's reputation which was already damaged by a series of gaffes from top management and accusations the company misled the public about the amount of oil flowing from its blown out Gulf of Mexico well. [ID:N22266356]

"I do believe it was a relatively trivial mistake and there was never any malice intended but it further reinforces the impression that this is an organisation that is willing to twist the truth," said Jonathan Hemus, director of communications specialists Insignia. (Reporting by Tom Bergin; Editing by Mike Nesbit