The Sankei Shimbun announced in its Monday evening edition that a photo it published earlier of a stork with the moon in the background was a composite photograph.
The photo was published in the Oct. 25 evening edition. The newspaper on Monday ran an apology explaining the incident.
According to the paper, the reporter who sent the photo failed to mention that it was a composite and the newspaper published it without verifying its authenticity.
"We see the case as a grave breach of trust to our readers. This is a serious issue that could shake the public's trust in newspaper reporting," Sankei stated in its apology.
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