Newspaper on Cape Cod Apologizes for a Veteran Reporter’s Fabrications

[alp227]

When an editor at The Cape Cod Times was reading the newspaper last month, she thought an article about the Veterans Day parade from the day before seemed slightly off.

The article, written by Karen Jeffrey, a longtime reporter, told of a Ronald Chipman, 46, and his family from Boston. The Chipmans apparently were oblivious to Veterans Day until they saw the parade. Ms. Jeffrey described the family in detail, including a scene in which the parents used their smartphones to find information about the holiday, creating a “teachable moment” for themselves and their children.

Maybe it was the tidiness of the tale. Or the notion that adults were unfamiliar with Veterans Day. But the article did not ring true to the editor and she set out to find the Chipmans. She searched several databases but turned up nothing. She reported her finding to the editor in chief, Paul Pronovost.

Mr. Pronovost asked the editor — whom he would not name to protect her privacy — to check other recent articles by Ms. Jeffrey. After more people in the articles could not be found, he then asked Ms. Jeffrey for help in locating the Chipmans. Ms. Jeffrey said she had thrown out her notes.

full: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/29/us/cape-cod-paper-apologizes-for-reporters-misdeeds.html?pagewanted=all

Some of Jeffrey's articles have been re-posted to DU, according to my preliminary google search.

[Journeyman]

1. Not to defend the reporter, but. . .

in a conversation with one of my clients (a graduate of a major university here on the West coast), I found she had no idea what Labor Day was all about, no conception that Mardi Gras has religious roots, and refused to believe Benjamin Franklin's epitaph celebrates his career as a printer to the exclusion of any other remembrance.

So I have no problem believing adults can be unfamiliar with holidays.

[Jumping John]

2. The Cape Cod Times, which is owned by News Corporation. n/t

[alp227]

3. That paper endorsed Mitt Romney and Scott Brown this year!

Romney for president

Actual quotes: "On the issue of equal pay for equal work, we expect Romney to support women in the fight against discrimination in the workplace when it comes to wages and benefits."

"The extreme positions Romney has adopted on the campaign trail were designed to win the necessary party support, but our experience here in Massachusetts is different. We know a much more moderate Romney, and we are confident we will see him again in the White House."

Brown for Senate

"While Brown's voting record as a state senator and a U.S. senator at times conflicted on the issue of women's access to health care, we hope he will represent women as the pro-choice candidate he claimed during the campaign."

What. The. ^&(*^(*&

[Heather MC]

4. Wow they endorsed two candidates based on

hoping they were only lying during their campaigns. I love seeings someone try to put a square peg in a round hole lol

[Jenoch]

5. This sort of thing happens with some frequency.

A New York Times reporter got busted for this a few years ago. He faked expense reports. I thnk he finsllt got busted because he couldn't come up with proof of flights he would have had to take to cover stories he wrote. A while back a female reporter won a Pupitzer for a fabricated long story about a drug addict or some sort of victim.