[mburbank]

It's a team effort.

I think this episode points to the aggregious state of Journalsim today. I've said repeatedly that journalism has become lazy and complacent. This is refelected both in a reporter who lies about leg work and editors who fail to fact check thoroughly. It's a systemic problem, and at least the Times acknowledges their part in it .

I'd hope that this most recent revalation of this sort of shit might spark journalistic reform across the board, but I'd hardly hold my breath.

If anyone thinks this is an isolated incident , I'd wager they thought Enron's accounting procedures were unique. Stuff like this doesn't happen in a vaccuum.