Introduction
The news media has been consumed by the issue of fraudulent journalism during the past month of May 2003. This was sparked by the discovery that acclaimed New York Times writer, Jayson Blair, had fabricated and plagiarized dozens of stories concerning such prominent topics as the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, the Virginia Sniper, and Iraqi Freedom officer Jessica Linch. Blair’s misdoings caused the news media to reflect on past offenders, such as Janet Cooke, a writer for the Washington Post, whose fabrication about an eight year old heroin addict won her the Pulitzer Prize.
There are striking similarities between Blair and Cooke, though their offenses are more than two decades apart. Both are African American, both lied about their education and credentials, yet still prospered at two of the largest and most respected news outlets in the country. The question most often posed concerning these two is, is there any justification for their actions? Are they the ethics demons the media portrays or are they just two people who succumbed to the pressures of success?

Justification for Cooke
In 1981 Janet Cooke was found guilty of not only fabricating a Pulitzer Prize winning story, but also lying about her graduation at Vasser college, which she did not attend. What could have motivated her to attempt this level of deception? First you have to look at her personal situation. Being an African American female not much more than a decade after the civil rights movement, and less than a decade after women’s liberation she no doubt found it difficult to get her foot in the door of the news media industry. She knew she had the ability but without the proper credentials and the impediment of her race and sex succeeded in this profession would have been near impossible. No doubt her beauty and charm aided her impression on her Post superiors. After excelling rapidly and writing a multitude of well written and researched stories, Cooke was pressured to cover a story concerning an eight year old heroin addict that supposedly as at a local rehabilitation center. After being unsuccessful in locating him, Cooke took it upon herself to elaborate on the little information she had concerning the mystery and created a beautifully written article detail the struggles of little Jimmy’s life. I feel Cooke’s intention was never to win the Pulitzer Prize but merely to appease her superiors. She had no idea the repercussions her actions would cause. It is obvious she had some degree of remorse due to the fact that she went in exile and wasn’t heard from for over fifteen years, and worked as a cashier earning minimum wage rather than face the public. I think in comparison to Blair she is definitely the lesser offender. We can forgive her more readily.

Justification for Blair
Unlike Cooke, Blair really didn’t have a reason to fabricate the numerous stories he did. Yes, he is African American and no doubt felt similar pressures as Cooke due to this fact but this particular period of time does not hinder peoples advancement on the bases of race as was practice in the 1980’s. The stories he were assigned were accessible and he would have been provided extensive compensation for any expenses he would have incurred. The biggest problem I have with Blair is that the stories he fabricated were of topics of such importance. All took place when the threat on United States national security were at its height. His actions could ultimately not just piss of the news media as well as the public but actually cause considerable damage by promoting misinformation. This is unforgivable, and he shows absolutely no remorse. Blair even goes so far as to cockily say “Everything will work out fine for me,”.
I do feel that there is an underlying reason for Blair’s actions though I do not view it as a defense, rather it is more of an explanation. Blair is mentally ill. This is evident not only from his physical behavior, but from the very nature of his actions. It is no secret that he has been treated for alcoholism and several of those closest to him expressed growing concern for his mental health during the previous months. What sane person would rather spend months cooped up in their apartment, when they have the opportunity to travel and cover some of the most important issues of this era? Blair went through the trouble to make fake hotel receipts to fool his superiors, and maxed out his personal credit cards for no apparent reason. I question whether Blair suffered another addiction (possibly substance abuse) that was financially strapping him and confining him to his home.

Whose Fault Is It?
In both Blair and Cooke’s situations the blame usually falls solely on their shoulders. Some, speculate that there were red flags that the papers themselves should have caught on to. For example, in Cooke’s situation, having read excerpts from “Jimmy’s World” it reads more like a 1970’s Iceberg Slim novel than a work of fact. I personally question the reality of a eight year old heroin addict for the shear fact that it is unlikely that and eight year old would be able to support this habit, or even physically inject himself. Cooke reported that Jimmy was turned on by his mother’s heroin addicted boyfriend., but I question what addict would waste their drugs on an eight year old? Cooke’s superiors continued to look the other way when Cooke was unable to provide the location of little Jimmy or the names of any of his family members. Hiding behind her rights as a journalist, had the story in fact been true she would have been aided the destruction of an eight year old boy. The fact that the Post could have supported this atrocity is more appalling than the fact that Cooke lied.
In Blair’s situation there were even more red flags that should have alarmed the editors of the Times. I actually found a page on the New York Times website that lists in detail the error found in dozens of Blair’s article, though to view them you must pay a fee. I do know that some of these errors include a fake description of Iraqi Freedom hostage, Jessica Linch’s home, and the lie that Blair had a relative die in the World Trade Center terrorist attacks. Out of dozens of articles it is hard to believe that none of the editors caught on and it is more likely that due to the pressures of producing a daily paper that covered hundreds of stories by different writers, the Times editors weren’t being as prudent as they could have been. This past week three of the top editors of the Times resigned, so I suspect the latter is the more accurate explanation.
Though, these individual writers were guilty of deception, the papers themselves are guilty of being irresponsible to the public, especially in the case of Blair. The Times’s readers placed a large amount of trust in what was printed in a time when they were very vulnerable, due to the state of national security and every amount of caution should have been implemented.

What Have We Learned?
There are lessons to be learned at every level from fraudulent journalism. One, audiences can never fully trust information presented to them. We must be active consumers and not only consult multiple sources for information, but also carefully analyze what is presented to us and search for things that just don’t sit right. We must also be wary of motivations for bias, i.e monetary gain, pressures to have the hot story, industry awards and so on. As producers, news outlets need to review their media ethics manuals and realize that the have responsibility to the public to present accurate and objective news. Turning a blind eye to questionable journalism is inexcusable and the consequences vastly out weigh the comfort and little laziness can generate. The same holds true for the individual writers, who some feel are even more responsible in these situations.
I feel that African American writers must be especially wary of this. Through my research I discovered several instances of fraudulent journalism offenders, but none received so much attention and coverage as Blair and Cooke and the fact that they are both African American is no coincidence. Journalist of all races, however, can learn from their situations. When you don’t feel like taking that extra step when covering a story, or think that one little flub won’t matter you need to consider if you are willing to pay the price if it is discovered and if your career and reputation are really worth it.