[Copernicus]

Go figure. Doug From Upland learns the hard way.

Posted to *CCRM

[RISU]

The Washington bureau of The New York Times has been flooded with
complaints today about an article purportedly written by two of our reporters.

I'm hoping -- in the interest of fair play -- that you will post this
explanation on your site, which is where the erroneous information originated.
The article being cited appeared in an Australian newspaper, The Age.
Although it carried the bylines of our reporters, Richard Stevenson and
James Rutenberg, in fact much of the material in the article was from The
Washington Post. The Post material included the passage about the
group Sept. 11 Families for Peaceful Tomorrows. (Originals of the Post
article and The Age articles can be found on their Web sites, if you would
like to doublecheck).

Combining materials from different news services is, of course, common
practice in this country and overseas. The problem, when it is done
sloppily, is that people are blamed -- or credited -- with work they did
not do. I will take up my complaints in that arena with the editors of The Age.

I'm hopeful that you will post this as swiftly, and distribute it as
widely, as the initial error was circulated.

Thank you for your consideration.

Susan Jo Keller

[farmfriend]

Short list for play.

[doug from upland]

Ping.

[baseballmom]

Doug, you're a standup guy, and I would join you in your apology to Mr.Stevenson.

This is going to be a long campaign, and we need to keep our emotions in check, hard as that is to do.

It is frustrating though, when we've known the truth of this organization for days, and then have to watch, as I did on Fox this afternoon, a woman named Kristin ----- trash Bush for using the ads.

[breakem]

classy move doug

[sauropod]

Very nicely done. You are an honorable man. 'Pod

[Cboldt]

You are giving great advice. Thoughtful and researched criticism, accompanied by name and contact information, are credible. Harsh and insulting criticism damages one's credibility, and credibility is an extremely valuable commodity, hard to come by, but easy to lose.

[Congressman Billybob]

Doug, you are a class act. If Martha Stewart had your brains and integrity, she would not be picking out striped pajamas even as we speak. It's always wise, when one screws up, to apologize as soon as the mistake is known.

I also sent a note to Stevenson, seconding your suggestion/request that he "follow the money" as Deep Throat told Woodward and Bernstein in that D.C. parking garage. I hope that Stevenson does that.

Because of the importance of this issue, I will add a reference to it to my column for this week, that will go out in a few hours.

Keep up the good work.

Congressman Billybob

Click here, then click the blue CFR button, to join the anti-CFR effort (or visit the "Hugh & Series, Critical & Pulled by JimRob" thread). Please do it now.

[Khurkris]

Good job.

As another poster said...Its gonna be a long election.

We need to pick our battles carefully. And gain any allies, no matter where they may come from. Truth and time are on our side.

[Paradox]

I would hate to think that Freepers are calling the people and leaving abusive messages. I mean, tell them the facts, but lets not be @ssholes, let the looney, rabid left do that.

Good job Doug!

[Mo1]

We take criticism very seriously. When we mess up, we try to acknowledge it and correct it. But calling and swearing at me, making ugly personal statements and jumping to conclusions on the basis of sketchy information -- which in this case turned out to be dead wrong -- is no way to engage me or my newspaper in a dialog. And I would point out that not one caller other than Doug had the guts to provide a name or a phone number."

You are correct Doug .. no one deserves to be treated like that.

[Mo1]

Ping to pass the word .. Attack on facts but let's not get in the sewer with the Rats

[moonman]

Thanks for the posy

"Don't make them your enemy. Most of them are just trying to earn a living."

And so is time share selling, hack lawyers and certain wall street traders and insiders. Call them what they are! Any amount of vulgarity can't equal what they do to us on a daily basis. But, that's just my opinon ;)

[Faithfull]

Doug, thank you for the post and the professional approach you took. I disagree with the freepers who resort to name calling and cheap tricks. They reflect poorly on the rest of us. Thank you for making a difference with honesty and solid facts. We need an army of people like you.

[CyberAnt]

Well .. FReepers are not the ones who do that kind of stuff .. phoning people and calling them names. There are some people who come here and then take advantage. I've seen it done hundreds of times. The fact these people would not identify themselves makes me even more convinced I'm right about it.

[doug from upland]

WHO ARE THE ANGRY VICTIMS?

[doug from upland]

Now here is a great sign ---

[Lancey Howard]

First, I agree that haranguing reporters is a loser. Totally counterproductive.

Second, it still looks like Stevenson was a willing, panting, tail-wagging lapdog when the DNC fed up these "outraged" 9/11 family members. He couldn't see that this was a DNC-orchestrated quick-response effort, primed and ready to spring at the first Bush TV ad? C'mon.... Nothing could have been more obvious.

A good reporter would have been on this like stink on poop trying to find out how the Democrats dug up these people, how much they were paid and/or promised, what their connection was to the Democrat party, and how they were so quickly lined up for TV, radio, and newspaper interviews all over the nation. A good reporter would have smelled a rat a mile away.

This was a masterpiece of political gamesmanship by the Democrats, no question, but it only worked because of the willing complicity of the liberal newrooms. In none of the stories and in none of the TV interviews was it asked of these "outraged" family members, "Did you have any contact with the Kerry campaign or with the Democrat party or its allies prior to coming forward with these criticisms?"

[doug from upland]

It has now been 11 hours since the original post. Has the NY TIMES written about the Heinz funding yet? I haven't see it on their website. I guess we need a betting pool.