Twitchy has been reporting on the many problems at Rolling Stone and their now discredited UVA gang rape story by contributing editor Sabrina Rubin Erdely, but at least one writer is vigorously defending the magazine’s internal fact-check process.
Here’s columnist Matt Taibbi from Saturday:
First, like everyone else at the magazine, I'm both mortified and sorry — for the public, for anyone affected, and for the source herself.
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 6, 2014
Managing Editor Will Dana is a mentor and friend who has always had my back and is one of the few true good people in this business.
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 6, 2014
I'm broken up for him.
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 6, 2014
People also need to understand that the mistake here did not involve the fact-checking department.
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 6, 2014
I was so surprised because Coco McPherson's fact-checking operation is so intense that it's nearly caused me nervous breakdowns in the past
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 6, 2014
It usually takes longer to fact-check a Rolling Stone feature than it does to write it. Each review is like an IRS audit. It's miserable.
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 6, 2014
At RS, they don't accept notes as backup. You must have everything on tape or video, or sources must speak directly with fact-checkers
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 6, 2014
I'm just explaining to people what my experience with this magazine has been. I'm sure other RS contributors will say exactly the same.
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) December 6, 2014
If any of what Taibbi wrote is true, then how did Erdely’s story make it into publication? It sounds impossible under the system that Taibbi just described.
Brian Stelter of CNN reports that an investigation into how Rolling Stone’s IRS-like fact-checking process went wrong:
Rolling Stone spox says the investigation into "Rape on Campus" article continues. No updates yet. Talking about this on @ThisHour now…
— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) December 8, 2014
Maybe, like the IRS, all of the important facts were on a crashed hard drive?
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