#4 - PLAGIARISM AND FABRICATION

 Fabrication in Mainstream Journalism

   Personally, when I think of plagiarism or fabrication, I think of the scary rule that looms over the heads of high school and college students everywhere. We have always been warned that breaking the rule of no plagiarism comes with big punishments, even expulsion. Growing up and hearing that rule, it can be hard to imagine why anybody would even try to plagiarize. In this case, the risk definitely seems bigger than the reward. However, fabrication is not just something students have to look out for. In mainstream journalism, being accused of or being caught committing plagiarism can seriously damage not only the journalist's name, but also whatever organization they represent. 

    A prime recent example of this is with The Post newspaper of Athens, Ohio. The Post is a student-run newspaper located on on Ohio University campus. The publication not only covers news related to the university, but also on the state and national level. The Post has received numerous awards from the Ohio News Media Association as well as the National College Media Convention. However, all of those honors could be overlooked because of one instance of fabrication that occurred within the newspaper a couple of weeks ago.

    In early February, a story was written on The Post's website about a a pair of signed cleats that Joe Burrow auctioned off to benefit the Athens County Food Pantry and the Foundation for Appalachian Ohio. Within that same week, the publication found out that the writer of the article actually fabricated several quotes and facts in regards to the story that seemingly damaged the integrity of the Athens County Food Pantry. In addition to skewing the reputation of The Post and the food pantry, this writer also defied many policies of the Ohio University Student Code of content. The Post issued a lengthy apology and a new fully corrected article which can be found here and here.

Editorial: Journalism ethics are at the core of The Post. This past week, we failed at those. The Post owes an apology not only to the Athens County Food Pantry, but also to all of our readershttps://t.co/soAWWXu98H

— The Post (@ThePost) February 6, 2021

    Reading about what happened at The Post made me realize two things. First, I realize now how easy it can be for people to fabricate news and get away with it. Thankfully, this publication found the problem before it was on the Internet for too long, but it is now becoming more and more common to hear of or see people make up information and post it for so many people to read. The second thing I realized is how important it is for me to make sure my work is always factual and accurate. As an upcoming journalist, my work is already being posted for anyone to see. If I do not constantly double check and make sure I am writing about accurate information, it will be very easy to fall victim to plagiarism or fabrication. In the media, specifically journalism, people are not always the most forgiving. Once someone messes by fabrication, it can be hard for them to get their reputation back to where it once was. That is why it is so important to always be alert and aware of the fabrication that can take place in anyone's story.