4. Plagiarism and fabrication

 

Plagiarism and Fabrication 

    The Society of Professional Journalists states that journalists should always "seek truth and report it" and "take responsibility for the accuracy of their work". However, that may not always be the case. There have been cases in the past of journalist fabricating stories out of thin air... literally. Fabrication is the invention of information, sources, quotes, or events and trying to pass them off as factual. Fabrication can lead to a number of consequences. Those who fabricate stories are in jeopardy of defamation lawsuits, loss of employment, and not to mention the loss of the public's trust. 

    One of the most notable examples of a reporter fabricating information is the Stephen Glass case. Glass was a reporter for The New Republic in the 1990s. During his time at the magazine, he fabricated dozens of stories where he created fake companies, fake sources, as well as fake events. Once his actions were discovered he was fired from the magazine and no longer welcome in the journalism world. He also completely shattered his long- term reputation. The case was so well known, and quite honestly a little baffling considering how believable his stories were, that the film "Shattered Glass" was a dramatized retelling of the events.  

    In 2025 the Independent Press Standards Organization in the United Kingdom officially censured a major UK newspaper, The Telegraph. The newspaper was caught publishing an article that was based on a family case study about school fees that was completely fabricated. The headlines read "We earn 345k (pounds), but soaring private school fees mean we can't go on five holidays." The article was supposedly reporting on the impact of increase private school fees and how although the household earned a significant of income it still was not enough to afford private school as well as the life that they have always afforded. The article comes after British government put into effect a VAT, or value added tax, on January first of 2025. The tax means that there will be a 20% tax added onto education and boarding fees at private and independent schools. Before 2025 most education was VAT- exempt. 

     Originally the article was suggested to have been written by artificial intelligence, however it was determined that the article was based on a real telephone interview with a man who may have deceived the reporter. The Press Gazette stated that the case study may have been "set up" by a PR company working for Saltus, a financial planning firm who had just released research that estimated the cost of school fees. Overall, the Independent Press Standards Organization required the Telegraph to publish an Adjudication . Later the newspaper released their own apology which stated "The Telegraph takes any breach of the editors' code of practice seriously. Upon identifying the complexities of this matter" and that "We published an apology in line with IPSO guidance, reinforcing our commitment to the highest editorial standards, which had regrettably fallen short on this occasion. After launching a thorough internal investigation, we have strengthened our pre-publication processes." 

    In conclusion, fabrication and plagiarism can lead to hurt and confusion amongst the public as well as lack of trust in what is supposed to be a reliable source for information. These cases as well as others has only further hindered the publics ability to put trust into these news outlets.