Jemele Hill to Duke Lax Players: I'm Sorry

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=hill/070412&lpos=spotlight&lid=tab1pos1

This link is from another thread but it deserves its own.
To Ms. Hill,

I am Sorry as well for judging you as a person based on a previous column. A difference of opinion doesn't mean a difference in humanity. For that, I am sorry.

Abbott

 

A nice little piece. Jemele's a promising writer. I'm glad she made the point how this will unjustly hurt the credibility of future rape victims. It will never publicized, but somewhere in this country actual rapists will probably be acquitted because juries will now be just a bit more skeptical when a rape victim gives her story, and when the issue's reasonable doubt that's all it takes.

 

Hey Jemele, I know you cruise these parts, it's Jesse Jackson not Jessie Jackson

 

Read any Simmons entry, and there's your answer.

 

Yes and somebody at espn.com was anal enough to fix it as well.
My point wasn't to be a dick, but to correct an error before it got into wide distribution.
The column was good, no need to spoil it with a stupid error.

 

Yes, and there are others out there anal enough to dismiss an entire column because of such an error.

 

Pretty good piece. Well thought out and reasoned. Kudos to Jemele.

Also, Mike Freeman on CBSSportsline tackles this one very well.

 

I respectfully disagree, Cowpie.

 

Jay was respectful in pointing out that it was misspelled. He wasn't a shit about it. In fact, Jemele probably appreciated that he said something, since her editors clearly missed it.


It was a good column, and a good example of how I think columnists build credibility. I'm more likely to want to read what Jemele writes in the future because she was willing to admit she was wrong -- even though as she points out, she never wrote about the Duke case. She could have simply pretended it didn't happen, pretend she didn't think those things, sort of like Lupica pretends Summer of '98 never happened, or Mariotti pretends he never slammed the White Sox all season before praising them when the won the World Series.

I never understood why columnists, some anyway, feel like they can't admit they were wrong. If a team goes in the tank, and they write "This team is done" and that team comes back to win a title, why is it so hard to say, "I jumped the gun. I was wrong. They fooled me, and countless others like me."

 

I tend to agree, with plagarism tops, making it up at No. 2 and basic factual errors, like not getting names right, at No. 3
Just curious what are your top three?

 

I would put making up stuff No. 1
Being dishonest with facts, conclusions No. 2
Plagiarism No. 3
Factual errors No. 4 (getting names wrong is bad, but not necessarily lazy. could just be a typo).

 

This seems to be a trend.