The Death of the NYT

Add another strike against the credibility of the New York Times.

Once again, the Times has failed to get its facts straight.

The dramatic story of Ali Shalal Qaissi's experience at Abu Ghraib was detailed by Hassan M. Fattah.



This photo accompanied the account. The caption read:

Ali Shalal Qaissi in Amman, Jordan, recently with a picture of himself standing atop a box and attached to electrical wires in Abu Ghraib.

According to a Salon article by Michael Scherer, the Times screwed up again. Qaissi isn't the man in the photo. In addition, there are other factual discrepancies in the Times article.

Here is Claudia Parsons' report for Reuters on the latest embarrassment for the Times.

She writes:

Michael Wolff, media columnist for Vanity Fair magazine, said the incident was not as bad as previous scandals because it was a case of incomplete reporting rather than an ethical violation. But he said it was a reminder of earlier, serious failures.

"A great newspaper is not supposed to be hoodwinked," Wolff said. "When you get it wrong, you look awfully foolish."

I agree. This isn't like the Jayson Blair lies or the Judith Miller fiasco. But the New York Times has pounded another nail in its coffin.

I can accept it being a liberal activist outlet. I can't accept its sloppy reporting and lies.

Its reputation as the nation's "paper of record" is dead. The New York Times is beyond redemption.