[lbo-talk] Fact-checking Anonymous Sources?

Yoshie Furuhashi critical.montages at gmail.com
Wed Apr 12 08:10:29 PDT 2006


Doug wrote: <blockquote>
>Doug wrote: "A New Yorker fact-checker told me that they put Hersh
>through the wringer on his pieces. The magazine, already notorious for
>the rigor of its routine checking, goes into high gear for his stuff."
>
>Almost all claims made in the Seymour Hersh article about nuking Iran
><http://www.newyorker.com/printables/fact/060417fa_fact> are based on
>anonymous sources. How can New Yorker fact-check stuff coming from
>anonymous sources like them?

Because he has to disclose the sources to his editor. You think they'd just run stuff on Hersh's word?</blockqutoe>

That only allows the editor to check whether the sources actually exist if the editor cares to contact them, but that doesn't allow the editor to check whether statements made by the sources are based on facts or the sources are just feeding Hersh what they want him to publish.

Aren't the leaks part of Washington's psychological warfare used as a means to pressure Iran?

-- Yoshie <http://montages.blogspot.com/> <http://mrzine.org> <http://monthlyreview.org/>



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