'Times' Poll: Should or Should We Not Print Lies?

Everyone is pretty aghast and/or in stitches over today’s weird and kinda embarrassing escapade by the New York Times public editor, Arthur Brisbane: “I’m looking for reader input on whether and when New York Times news reporters should challenge ‘facts’ that are asserted by newsmakers they write about.” Not just when; whether! A list of people currently making fun of this runs from editors of city papers to New Yorker correspondents to totally random unemployed people to… well, the Times staffers are all sitting on their hands right now. GOSH, HOW THAT MUST BURN.

How does this argument even go, anyway? PRO: Sure! Let the record reflect whatever people say, that way we have a record of it. CON: No, definitely not! The newspaper should report all lies unchallenged!

(Also, oh yes, let’s have readers — aka BLOG COMMENTERS — provide the “input” on these issues. Er, no offense, some of my best friends are blog commenters.) Anyway, haven’t seen Twitter make so much fun of one person since, hmm… a SuperBowl half-time show, or maybe that time that ESPN became the LeBron network? Hey, only 18 months till Arthur Brisbane’s term is up.

Previously: Man Attacks ‘Times’ Success on Behalf of Its Readers.