L.A. Times Prints Quote From Fake Release
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James Joyner | Thursday, December 29, 2005 |
The AP reports that the Los Angeles Times printed an April Fool’s Day fake press release as legitimate news.
L.A. Times Prints Quote From Fake Release
A quote in a fake news release that was intended as an April Fool’s joke ended up in a front-page story in the Los Angeles Times. The story in Tuesday’s editions of the Times noted how successful the reintroduction of wolves had been 10 years ago, but said the predators remained controversial. “In Wyoming, for example, Gov. Dave Freudenthal last April decreed that the Endangered Species Act is no longer in force and that the state ‘now considers the wolf as a federal dog,’ unworthy of protection,” the story read.
The Times printed a correction Wednesday, acknowledging that the news release was a hoax. “The reporter saw it on the Internet and had talked with the governor in the past, so she was familiar enough with the way he talks and writes that she thought it sounded authentic, and she didn’t check, which she should have,” Times Deputy Metro Editor David Lauter told the Casper Star Tribune.
“We hate when this kind of thing happens, and we correct it as quickly as we can,” Lauter said.
Funny.
Update: Ace adds, “It’s so sad when effete narcisstic children grab the megaphone without integrity or accountability.” I had a similar, although slightly less funny, reaction but was going to let them slide since they corrected it in the next edition. (See this post for background.)
About the Author: James Joyner is the publisher of Outside the Beltway and the managing editor of the Atlantic Council. He's a former Army officer, Desert Storm vet, and college professor with a PhD in political science from The University of Alabama. He lives just outside the Beltway in Alexandria, Virginia with his wife and infant daughter.
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The Dems need to get the MSM to work for the GOP. It would help with the Dems credibility.
Lessee, here.
The story was printed in April.
We're just getting ready for the big fireworks display over the Falls for NYE.
Is the story here, that the LAT took so long to admit they fouled up?
Bithead: The fake press release was from April. The story came out Tuesday and the correction on Wednesday this week. It's mostly just amusing and an indication of sloppy work.
James,
I almost posted the same sentiment as well.
S
A federal dog??? I think the correct term is a feral dog meaning a wild domesticated dog. The MSM doesn't even know enough to correct the incorrect word usgae in the fake story.
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