Zachery Kouwe, the New York Times business reporter who resigned under pressure earlier this year after it was revealed he had plagiarized the Wall Street Journal and other media, is now writing for the business gossip site Dealbreaker.com.
“You’re probably also aware he’d done a similar thing to yours truly when he lifted a memo from us and claimed he’d received it on his own (a claim later retracted by DealBook). Apparently that’s what it takes to get a job here these days! So ladies, if you’re looking for a new gig just start CTRL+C’ing DealBreaker– and I’m sure we’ll be giving you a call. Plagiarizers with tech expertise will get extra-special consideration.”
Read more here.
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As I've said before, I don't believe this kid is not Stephen Glass or Jayson Blair, plagiarizing with malice and intent. I believe he was an over-worked reporter in a cheap newsroom, that pressured too many people in a world where Control-C and Control-V create the opportunity for mistakes.
Yep, yep. Lots of media companies, NYT especially, have a combination of professional standards and workload levels that are just about impossible for anyone short of a superhero to meet. There are some ridiculously talented people at the New York Times, and elsewhere, who -- by sleeping four hours per night or less and systematically under-reporting numerous hours on their time cards -- are capable of maintaining both the high standards and heavy workloads. But most normal people, under those kinds of pressures, will take a few short cuts here and there. Good luck, Zach. I'll be sure to say hi if I ever see you at a media-people happy hour.
Mr. Kouwe's explanations for his plagiarism were lies. He cut and pasted from other sources, he knew he did it, and the claims of time pressure or lack of awareness are just false. "Most normal people ... will take a few short cuts here and there," says one naive believer. That's not what journalism is. Journalism is doing your own research and publishing that. If you publish other people's research, simply identify it as such. Kouwe tried to pass off other people's work as his own, did so with full knowledge and awareness and got caught. Fortunately, he has found gullible people who be sure to say hi at a happy hour. I don't think blatant liars deserve even that much.