Journalism Scandals Journalism I Mr. Bruno

Janet Cooke, Washington Post ( ) “Jimmy’s World” –1980 –About an 8-year-old heroin addict –Won 1981 Pulitzer Prize Was childhood drug addiction a trend? –D.C. authorities searched for days –No child drug addicts found. Was she telling the truth? –Editors asked Cooke about discrepancies on her resume –She confessed that “Jimmy” was a fabrication –Later said she’d heard of a boy like that but never met him and created him to get her editors off her back.

Dateline NBC (1992) “Waiting to Explode” –GM trucks exploded during side-impact collision –Dateline shows this as part of story. Special Effects –Truck was wired to explode by remote control. –GM sued for libel. Results –NBC News President apologized on air and then resigned.

Jayson Blair, The New York Times (2003) Past Mistakes? –Made errors in at least four stories while editor of U-Md.’s student newspaper –Claimed to have finished school at U-Md. and did not New York Times –Became reporter in 1999 –Rebuked for mistakes and sloppy work habits –Promoted from Metro to National desk despite his editor's fierce objections

Jayson Blair, The New York Times (2003) Sniper Shootings –Covered D.C. sniper shootings in 2002 –Authorities and editors criticized his many errors Plagiarism and Downfall –In 2003, Reporter from San Antonio News-Express saw parts of her story in one of Blair’s articles –Times investigated: 36 of 73 stories Blair had written since 2002 were suspect –Blair resigned May 2, 2003

Dan Rather, CBS News(2004) “Memogate” –Story about George W. Bush’s Vietnam-era service record –Rather’s story used possibly forged documents that “proved” that Bush avoided serving in Vietnam Deliberately Misled? –No evidence that rather intended to mislead public –Investigation proved that he had little to do with the production of the report. Stepping Down –Rather resigned as anchor of CBS News in 2005

Stephen Glass (1998) Reporter for The New Republic, a Washington politics magazine. Fabricated several stories for the magazine during his tenure there. Subject of 2002 movie Shattered Glass