On Friday morning, The New York Times published a story alleging that the Department of Justice was pursuing a "criminal inquiry" into Hillary Clinton's use of a personal email account during her tenure as secretary of state. But as the story that "seemed like a blockbuster" spread over the internet, some crucial inaccuracies emerged: For one, Clinton was not the subject of the investigation — it was a more general investigation into whether government information in her personal emails was mishandled — and then the Times backed off the "criminal" aspect of the inquiry altogether, downgrading it to a "security referral."
"It was, to put it mildly, a mess," writes The New York Times' Public Editor Margaret Sullivan. Though The New York Times proceeded to issue not one, but two corrections, and the story underwent numerous modifications, "[y]ou can't put stories like this back in the bottle — they ripple through the entire news system," Sullivan says.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
-
'A direct, protracted war with Israel is not something Iran is equipped to fight'Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Today's political cartoons - April 17, 2024Cartoons Wednesday's cartoons - political anxiety, jury sorting hat, and more
-
Arid Gulf states hit with year's worth of rainSpeed Read The historic flooding in Dubai is tied to climate change
-
Why Johnson won't just pass Ukraine aidSpeed Read The House Speaker could have sent $60 billion in military aid to Ukraine — but it would have split his caucus
-
Sudan on brink of collapse after a year of warSpeed Read 18 million people face famine as the country continues its bloody downward spiral
-
Trump's first criminal trial starts with jury picksSpeed Read The former president faces charges related to hush money payments made to adult film star Stormy Daniels
-
How will Israel respond to Iran's direct attack?Speed Read Iran’s weekend attack on Israel could escalate into a wider Middle East war
-
US, Israel brace for Iran retaliatory strikesSpeed Read An Iranian attack on Israel is believed to be imminent
-
Congress honors real-life Rosie the RivetersSpeed Read These American women reshaped the work force during World War II
-
Outgunned Ukraine could fall, US general warnsSpeed Read Without more US aid, Ukraine is at risk of losing the war
-
House GOP scuttles FISA vote at Trump's urgingSpeed Read Right-wing lawmakers blocked Speaker Mike Johnson's surveillance bill
