To retain journalistic credibility, getting a story right is more important than pursuing a crusade.
That’s a fair takeaway from a report published this week by the Columbia Journalism Review dissecting the so-called Russiagate saga, during which former President Donald Trump was accused of colluding with Russian officials to win the 2016 election. While pursuing the story, many journalists went well beyond their traditional role of scrutinizing powerful officials and not only openly picked a side in America’s escalating political warfare but committed to proving a literal conspiracy theory true, no matter the evidence. It didn’t go well.
