The Daily Mail secretly tailed and photographed a woman in Detroit before publishing an article and photographs falsely accusing her of being former The White Stripes drummer Meg White, multiple sources have told the Guardian. This occurred even after the woman reportedly informed the newspaper of its error.
The British tabloid removed the article and photographs, initially published on August 6, from its website last week. The Mail did not issue a correction or editor’s note to explain the removal.
The Mail's story, written by senior reporter Joe Hutchison, claimed to have found the "reclusive female music megastar" and promised to reveal her "secret new life." However, the Guardian was told the paper followed and photographed a friend of White's. The article included more than a dozen pictures of the unsuspecting woman.
A music label executive, close to both White and the photographed friend, stated that neither woman had any idea they were being followed. Karen Elson, Jack White's ex-spouse, also confirmed in a deleted social media post that the woman is a friend of Meg White.
According to the Mail's own reporting, when approached, the woman laughed and told the paper it was mistaken. Despite this, the paper concluded she was White because she politely replied "thank you" after a compliment about The White Stripes' music.