Blogger-vs.-Sherrod Affair a Lesson in Newsgathering

A controversy over a veteran government worker turned out to be no controversy at all.  But it was a lesson for newspeople and the news-consuming public.

KYW's Larry Kane reports that the episode left the government, and certain elements of the news media, red-faced.

Veteran Agriculture Department employee Shirley Sherrod was forced to resign from her lifelong job after a blogger released a tape in which Sherrod appeared to be making racist remarks. The African-American woman was even condemned by the NAACP based on the edited tape.

But after the full tape of her remarks was reviewed, it was apparent that she was taken out of context. The president and the agriculture secretary both apologized to her.

The blogger sticks by his original story.  But most of the mainstream media that picked up his story -- lock, stock, and barrel -- have since backpedaled if not apologized.

The news business has been accused sometimes of trying to be first at all costs. But what about the case when journalists pick up on a story that is simply wrong?   This is just further proof that failing to check the facts can be hazardous and embarrassing.