The Press: Mea Culpa

"In short, we find ourselves guilty," the Washington Post told readers of its editorial page. In convicting itself of "reinforcing a misconception," the Post was straightforward about it: "There is no adequate excuse for making this kind of error in the first place and none for failing to pursue the truth behind the phony 'facts.' "

The Post's sin was to state on Dec. 9, 1969 that "a total of 28 [Black] Panther members have died in clashes with police since Jan. 1, 1968" without giving the source of its information or trying to verify the accuracy of the figure. What prompted...

Want the full story?

Subscribe Now

Subscribe
Subscribe

Learn more about the benefits of being a TIME subscriber

If you are already a subscriber sign up — registration is free!