Last November, Rolling Stone published a horrifying story about an alleged gang rape on the campus of the University of Virginia. A woman named "Jackie" accused members of the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity of a brutal gang rape that shook the community and appalled readers of the publication. We now know that not only did the supposed facts not add up, but that those responsible for the piece never bothered to fact check. Sabrina Rubin Erdely interviewed Jackie eight times for the explosive story that we now know has been officially retracted, but never talked to her friends in spite of referencing them in the piece. The UVA fraternity will take legal action against the magazine while the wrtier will keep her job in spite of the scandal.
After a full investigation of the case, Rolling Stone admitted that it made a huge mistake in publishing Jackie's allegations, saying, "We are officially retracting 'A Rape on Campus.' We are also committing ourselves to a series of recommendations about journalistic practices that are spelled out in the report. We would like to apologize to our readers and to all of those who were damaged by our story and the ensuing fallout, including members of the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity and UVA administrators and students. Sexual assault is a serious problem on college campuses, and it is important that rape victims feel comfortable stepping forward. It saddens us to think that their willingness to do so might be diminished by our failings."
While the magazine has fully admitted to its mistake, it is also insisting that neither Erdely or her editor will lose their jobs, in spite of making such a careless mistake. Erdely's biggest journalistic problem was in not wanting to upset her subject. Since rape is such a sensitive topic, Erdely opted not to talk to the friends who saw Jackie on the night of her alleged assault. She also sent a two-line email to Phi Kappa Psi looking for a response to the allegations that never came.
So while Erdely gets to keep her job, UVA has confirmed that its fraternity will be taking legal action against Rolling Stone and has a good shot at winning whatever case it chooses to bring. This instance of bad journalism has led to a lot of discussion about how the press researches sensitive topics such as rape. There has also been serious backlash regarding the fact that Erdely has not been fired.
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