The timing might be the most remarkable thing in this remarkable tale of New York Times reporter Jayson Blair, who fabricated many details of his stories. Strangely enough, I watched a profile on 60 Minutes last night of Stephen Glass, the reporter for the New Republic who also fabricated most of his stories. Glass has a new “novel” out called The Fabulist, and after five years of therapy, seems to be trying to make amends. Of course, none of his colleagues trust him…
UPDATE: I’ve also become aware of the story of Janet Cooke, a Washington Post reporter who actually won a Pulitzer Prize in 1981 for “Jimmy’s World,” a story about an 8-year old heroin addict. Two days after winning the prize, she admitted that Jimmy was fictional, a “composite” of other child addicts. She returned the prize, resigned, and faded into obscurity.