Posted 9:34 AM by Scoobie Davis

Important Thoughts
From the Howler:

GLASS HOUSES: When we saw Shattered Glass this weekend, we were quite surprised by how strong the film is. Yes, there are a few massive flaws, flaws we plan to discuss next week. But we strongly suggest that you see this film—remembering, of course, that Bernie Goldberg is every bit as big a dissembler as Stephen Glass ever was. Why did Glass get canned while Goldberg gets puffed? Good question! Next week, we’ll discuss it. By the way: Ten months after Glass got fired, his former editor, Michael Kelly, wrote “Farmer Al” for the Washington Post. It was as big as any fraud Glass produced—and a thousand times more consequential. But Glass was expendable; Kelly wasn’t. More on these topics next week.

One more thing, Glass's journalistic dishonesty generally was about mundane things. He created stories out of whole cloth for the purpose of benefiting himself. On the other hand, Kelly wrote blatantly dishonest pieces such as the fraudulent "Farmer Al" story to harm others. Kelly will not be missed by anyone who cares about journalistic integrity.