Kathianne
12-06-2014, 01:01 AM
Common Wisdom says, "No." Commonsense says to use 'commonsense.'
In this case, a reporter and an editor failed to apply commonsense:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2014/12/05/rolling-stone-retracts-uva-story/19954293/
<section id="module-position-NtkfMgqBnTc" class="storytopbar-bucket story-headline-module" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;">Rolling Stone backs off from U.Va. rape story
</section><section id="module-position-NtkfMgqlBjA" class="storytopbar-bucket priority-asset-module" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;"></section>http://www.gannett-cdn.com/-mm-/dd8b1baf67130a1edc52e1868cb7f1ece5f42a54/r=26&c=26x26/local/-/media/USATODAY/staff/images/writer_autos_tech-Yu_Roger.png Roger Yu (http://www.usatoday.com/staff/1144/roger-yu/), USA TODAY 7:34 p.m. EST December 5, 2014
Rolling Stone magazine said Friday that it found discrepancies in its controversial story about an alleged gang rape of a woman named "Jackie" at the University of Virginia and had lost faith in the piece -- a shocking retreat coming merely days after author Sabrina Rubin Erdely defended the reporting.
"In the face of new information, there now appear to be discrepancies in Jackie's account, and we have come to the conclusion that our trust in her was misplaced," Will Dana, the magazine's managing editor, wrote (http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/news/a-note-to-our-readers-20141205) on its website.
"We were trying to be sensitive to the unfair shame and humiliation many women feel after a sexual assault and now regret the decision to not contact the alleged assaulters to get their account," the post said. "We are taking this seriously and apologize to anyone who was affected by the story."
...
Erdely didn't contact the men for comments due to an agreement with Jackie, Dana said. "Because of the sensitive nature of Jackie's story, we decided to honor her request not to contact the man she claimed orchestrated the attack on her nor any of the men she claimed participated in the attack for fear of retaliation against her," Dana wrote.
The fraternity also spoke out Friday.
"We have no knowledge of these alleged acts being committed at our house or by our members," according to a statement released Friday by the university chapter of Phi Kappa Psi. "Our initial doubts as to the accuracy of the article have only been strengthened as alumni and undergraduate members have delved deeper."
...
Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring called on Rolling Stone to take steps to correct errors in the story rather than simply issuing a walk-back statement.
...
Rolling Stone's article threw mud at a UV, a fraternity, and possibly some young men that weren't even given a chance to defend themselves.
In this case, a reporter and an editor failed to apply commonsense:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2014/12/05/rolling-stone-retracts-uva-story/19954293/
<section id="module-position-NtkfMgqBnTc" class="storytopbar-bucket story-headline-module" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;">Rolling Stone backs off from U.Va. rape story
</section><section id="module-position-NtkfMgqlBjA" class="storytopbar-bucket priority-asset-module" style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;"></section>http://www.gannett-cdn.com/-mm-/dd8b1baf67130a1edc52e1868cb7f1ece5f42a54/r=26&c=26x26/local/-/media/USATODAY/staff/images/writer_autos_tech-Yu_Roger.png Roger Yu (http://www.usatoday.com/staff/1144/roger-yu/), USA TODAY 7:34 p.m. EST December 5, 2014
Rolling Stone magazine said Friday that it found discrepancies in its controversial story about an alleged gang rape of a woman named "Jackie" at the University of Virginia and had lost faith in the piece -- a shocking retreat coming merely days after author Sabrina Rubin Erdely defended the reporting.
"In the face of new information, there now appear to be discrepancies in Jackie's account, and we have come to the conclusion that our trust in her was misplaced," Will Dana, the magazine's managing editor, wrote (http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/news/a-note-to-our-readers-20141205) on its website.
"We were trying to be sensitive to the unfair shame and humiliation many women feel after a sexual assault and now regret the decision to not contact the alleged assaulters to get their account," the post said. "We are taking this seriously and apologize to anyone who was affected by the story."
...
Erdely didn't contact the men for comments due to an agreement with Jackie, Dana said. "Because of the sensitive nature of Jackie's story, we decided to honor her request not to contact the man she claimed orchestrated the attack on her nor any of the men she claimed participated in the attack for fear of retaliation against her," Dana wrote.
The fraternity also spoke out Friday.
"We have no knowledge of these alleged acts being committed at our house or by our members," according to a statement released Friday by the university chapter of Phi Kappa Psi. "Our initial doubts as to the accuracy of the article have only been strengthened as alumni and undergraduate members have delved deeper."
...
Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring called on Rolling Stone to take steps to correct errors in the story rather than simply issuing a walk-back statement.
...
Rolling Stone's article threw mud at a UV, a fraternity, and possibly some young men that weren't even given a chance to defend themselves.