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The New York Times announced on Friday that it would hand out its 2018 Peabody Award for its “Caliphate” podcast, hours after the newspaper acknowledged that large parts of the audio series did not meet its editorial standards.
Why is this important: It’s an embarrassing mistake for The Times, which has invested significant resources in the project since 2018. It’s also a grim reminder to the journalism industry that even large, well-funded institutions can make costly mistakes.
What they say: “As a standard for quality media, the integrity of the Peabody Award is paramount, and we appreciate the professional manner in which The Times has handled this matter,” Jeffrey Jones, executive director of the Peabody Awards, said Friday evening.
- “We will receive the award back, acknowledging the mutual respect the two organizations have for their long-standing track record of journalistic integrity.”
- rukmini Callimachi, who hosted the series, wrote in a tweet on Friday: “To our listeners, I apologize for what we missed and what we went wrong.”
- Dean Baquet, Times Editor Said in an interview with The Daily newspaper’s morning podcast: “When The New York Times does deep, big, and ambitious journalism in any format, we bring it to scrutiny at the upper levels of the newsroom … We didn’t do that in this case. “
- He admitted that he personally did not provide the same review process for this story as for other major investigations, like the article on Trump’s tax returns. “I completely regret that … I haven’t personally paid enough attention to this one.”
The state of play: The Times added an editor’s note at the top of pages that include elements of “Caliphate”.
- The newspaper chose not to remove the episodes and the original story and the podcasts are still listed on the company’s website and podcast platforms.
- The Times had his opinion and news sections covered the unfolding of events, and Baquet explained what happened on “The Daily”.
- Callimachi has been reassigned, writes the Washington Post.
Catch up quickly: Earlier this year, reports began to surface that the lead character of the “Caliphate” podcast named Shehroze Chaudhry, a self-proclaimed ISIS executioner, lied and exaggerated about his experience.
The Times conducted an internal investigation after numerous reports of flaws in the central figure’s story.
- Canadian authorities arrested Chaudhry in September, claiming he made misleading statements about terrorist activity in interviews
- The Times “found a story of misrepresentation by Mr. Chaudhry and no corroboration that he committed the atrocities he described in the” Caliphate “podcast,” according to the editor’s note released Friday.
- “I think this guy who we now believe was a con artist,” Baquet said. “I think this is one of those instances where we didn’t listen loud enough which called the story into question and the signs that our story maybe not as strong as we thought it was. . “
When asked if the answer to the lies of the “caliphate” constitutes a retraction, Baquet told NPR in an interview: “I guess for the parts that concerned [Shehroze] Chaudhry and its history and its journey. Yeah, I think it is. Of course. “
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