Mark Grabowski wrote two separate columns for the Washington Examiner analyzing BuzzFeed News's controversial decision to publish an anonymous, unverified 35-page document with lurid allegations about ties between the Russian government and Donald Trump.
Grabowski said publishing the document was unethical and possibly illegal.
"Buzzfeed didn't bother independently verifying the 'leaked' information, which responsible journalists do, especially when it comes to allegations as explosive as those in the dossier," wrote Grabowski, a professor who teaches media law and ethics. "In an era when information moves at the speed of a tweet, getting the story out first has apparently become more important than getting it right."
Buzzfeed may suffer more than just bad publicity. The pundit and lawyer warned, "BuzzFeed may be vulnerable" to a lawsuit, "if Trump ... can prove it was a false statement of fact."
But, he added: "That said, I do think some Trump supporters' outrage over this is a bit sanctimonious. Many of them ran with literally every unverified conspiracy theory during the election. Now, all of a sudden, they realize they are actually advocates for truth and fairness in journalism and have serious issues with unsubstantiated reports?"
Grabowski's columns were widely-circulated and cited by several political blogs, such as Conservative Post and The Truth Division.
Grabowski said publishing the document was unethical and possibly illegal.
"Buzzfeed didn't bother independently verifying the 'leaked' information, which responsible journalists do, especially when it comes to allegations as explosive as those in the dossier," wrote Grabowski, a professor who teaches media law and ethics. "In an era when information moves at the speed of a tweet, getting the story out first has apparently become more important than getting it right."
Buzzfeed may suffer more than just bad publicity. The pundit and lawyer warned, "BuzzFeed may be vulnerable" to a lawsuit, "if Trump ... can prove it was a false statement of fact."
But, he added: "That said, I do think some Trump supporters' outrage over this is a bit sanctimonious. Many of them ran with literally every unverified conspiracy theory during the election. Now, all of a sudden, they realize they are actually advocates for truth and fairness in journalism and have serious issues with unsubstantiated reports?"
Grabowski's columns were widely-circulated and cited by several political blogs, such as Conservative Post and The Truth Division.
RSS Feed