For what it's worth, I e-mailed Tom Hays a short while ago and expressed by displeasure.
I was polite but used the words "biased", "ridiculous" and "irresponsible" in my short missive to him.
Maybe you're right. Maybe it's high time to go straight to the top on things like this.
I am gonna e-mail the CEO of AP!
If the reporter were in a genuine search for truth, this might work. But if he were, he would have never written this blatant falsehood in the first place. There is nothing ambiguous about what he did.
Contact the CEO and, respectfully, request a report on the outcome. It's not our place to say he should be fired; but it is our duty to stand up for, and defend, truth. Words have consequences. Actions have consequences. When they don't, we're in trouble.