I’ve covered the Justice Department for three decades, and seldom have I seen a story like the one published in the New York Times this week under the headline, “Some on Mueller's Team Say Report Was More Damaging Than Barr Revealed.”
What concerned me most is that the story’s anonymous allegations reflect a fundamental misunderstanding of the role prosecutors play, including special counsels such as Robert Mueller....
There is compelling evidence — starting with the lead of the story — that the Times information comes anonymously from “associates” of the actual prosecutors. In other words, it is second-hand hearsay.
I’m not sure that rises to a strong journalistic standard.