As a Post reader, I don't mind opinion, and strong opinions. I do want real balance.
If you are going to have a Republican operative and movement conservative as a blogger, have a Democratic operative and movement progressive also. Is that so hard?

"We also remain committed to representing a broad spectrum of ideas and ideologies in our Opinions area."

That's nice. Of course, when people criticized this hire initially, the paper stated that he wasn't being hired because he was a conservative, but because of his writing talent. So when you pick a replacement, it won't necessarily be a conservative, right? You'll pick someone from the left or the right with interesting ideas who writes (his or her own words) well, correct?

I think it was right for Mr. Domenech to resign. The Post.com should be more careful about who it decides to hire in the future and, since it is the website of a well-respected national newspaper, hire an actual journalist who reports news instead of a partisan who bloviates on behalf of his cronies.

The internet is chock-full of sites where readers can get obviously partisan writing. The Post and the The Post.com shouldn't endanger its own standing as a respected news outlet by hiring partisan bloggers from either side.

Woohoo! Another Dan Rather-esque ploy to rush to market with an unfinished product, eh Brady? Durn bloggers...durn internets.

What is it with twentysomething Bush appointees resigning in disgrace after lying about their professional backgrounds (see: Deutsch; Domenech)?

Ahh yes...they represent the views of the MAJORITY of Americans. Apparently, we're all okay with a little fibbery here and there, as long as we're ideologically pure.

don't hire another fool like him

I just want to say that I think the WaPo.com was wrong to hire this guy with little experience.

But I think this post is showing that they are currently handling it perfectly. They are still doing an investigation. They are not attacking those that discovered the plagiarism.

Props to the WaPo.com for doing the right thing now. I wish they would have from the beginning, but that's okay.

All is forgiven, from my viewpoint.

Is not being "aware of allegations" the same as not being aware of the facts?

Wow! Brady you've gotta feel pretty dumb hiring him, yeah? Especially after you trashed Jane Hamsher and other liberal bloggers for all the sins a guy in your organization just comitted. That's gotta sting a little. Can we get a little apology?

I agree with the first poster. The primary problem was not that you hired a hack, but that you hired him to tilt your opinion posting to the extreme right. It was unfair to mouthpiece one side without having REAL balance.

The secondary problem was that he was hired based on nepotism; he was obviously an untalented, unspectacular, mediocre young man, who spoke ineloquently and hatefully in an environment where real writers should be used. He should just go back to his amateur blog, where his immature and amateur blie-spewing is OK. It's inappropriate for what purports to be a real journalistic body. (*purports to be*.)

Plus, as we see, he's a plagiarist, apparently.

So Jim, be thankful. That allows you to can him without having to look like you bowed to Those Horrible Groundlings And Leftists. Call it the "Harriet Miers Excuse".

That way, we're happy that he's gone, and you're happy that you get off scot free, without looking like you were disobeying the Righty Masters who told you to hire him (and ONLY him, no Blue America).

Bwahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha

So...when will those responsible for this awful hire face consequences?

Or are you "accountable" in the Bush tradition of taking zero accountability for anything?

Don't go all wingnut on us, WaPo. You used to have a decent rep and serious cred.

Also, allow me to take this opportunity to say "Good Riddance!"

also,
PWNED.

The Detached and Disinterested Media: Detached from reality, disinterested in really doing their job. Way to go Brady!

here's an idea for your next "red america" hire: have someone google his clip file. And if you ever get around to hiring a "blue america" blogger, you could do the same. And why would the Post hire anyone who called Coretta Scott King a communist?

Box Turtles everywhere are weeping.

I think hiring someone with journalistic experience comparable with Froomkin's- but who leans right - would be a much better bet. The problem with his ethical conduct was a symptom of a hiring atmosphere that was itself poisoned.

How could an august institution like Washington Post with so many resources at its disposal make such a mistake?

Hiring Plagiarizers now, are we? Next time try to hire an intelligent, articulate, interesting blogger, and not some right-wing hack. I am sure there are right-wing bloggers out there who aren't so deeply compromised and who have some sense of professionalism. Perhaps you can find one and pit him/her against a left-wing blogger. Let them duke it out in some red/blue corner of your site.

I think we should convene another hearing on blogger ethics. :D

LOL

The Washington Post's credability has been tarnished over this.

It seems to me fundamental that when you hire someone you research there past writings in order to (a) determine their worth and (b) determmine their originality. Neither of these two things was done. It is true that Domenech is responsible for his transgressions but the Post also bears responsibility here. It hired someone who was easily discovered to have committed plagiarism. Not to mention that his original writings were at best sophomoric and at worst slanderous. This incident cannot be sloughed off as simply the post being misled. The post was a willing participant in this charade by placing a willingness to bow down before its right wing detractors before journalist ethics or good sense. A clue to the clueless: No apologist for the Bush administration is going to fare any better because one can only defend the indefensible through lies, half-truths, and deception - Domenech's tools of trade.

Wow, a "Young Republican" turns out to be a lying hack. What a surprise.

My question is when will the Post admonish Bob Woodward, who has disgraced the Post and himself far worse than Box Turtle?

Incidentally, bloggers found the Box Turtle theft within a day. Doesn't the Post have Google or Lexis/Nexis?

If you insist on having an additional right-wing voice on this site, here's hoping that you try to find someone with just a smidgen of integrity.

Geez - I hope for his sake that his mom doesn't go re-checking all his homeschooled papers.

Embarrassing, humiating. The Post I mean.

Resign Brady.

Mr. Brady's communication above is absolutely astounding. It reaches a height of irresponsibility that, in my opinion, disqualifies him from his position.

He is saying that the Washington Post has no responsibility to check the background of those whom it hires...that, in fact, they leave that responsibility to their readership.

Mr. Brady should resign immediately. Either before or after he apologizes for abusing the readers of the Post.

John Gage

Wingnut fundamentalist helps prove natural selection

Cockroaches that venture into the light get stepped on.

Wow, y'all really screwed up on this one.

We all look forward to the results of your investigation of this (now former) employee. As an alumnus of The College of William and Mary (Class of 1993), I would also ask that you forward your findings on to them. Mr Domenech has been accused of publishing a number of plagiarized articles in the school's newspaper. I believe that my school has an obligation to investgate and answer these charges, and I would ask that you provide them with any information that would assist them in doing so.

Sincerely yours,
Frank J Probst, MD, PhD
William and Mary Alumnus, Class of 1993

As Sam Seder and Duncan Black "Atrios" just pointed out in a conversation on AirAmerica, Froomkin's job is to cover the White House. He doesn't blog, in general, about anything and everything. And, don't blame him if all the stories coming out of the White House are bad! If there was any good news there, he'd cover it!

You Owe Us An Apology.

How dare you? And how dare Kurtz write an article in which he admits to knowing about the plagiarism and doesn't call for Domenech's removal?

What the hell is wrong with you people? Get your minds back.

I think it's a powerful statement on the state of media in general that a journalistic institution with a repute for investigative reporting does not have the resources to do a simple background check on a new employee.

It took a half dozen bloggers in their underwear a day and a half to discover Domenech's not-so-closeted skeletons. And this speaks nothing of the fact that he was an avowed bigot whose disdain for sourcing and factual argument was well-documented prior to the reveleations about his "creative" use of others' talents.

I'd agree with the principle that the Post should provide a venue for all views, but I would hope that in future the Post's editors will, at a minimum, require that even its conservative contributors adhere to the most basic standards of accuracy and ethics. Perhaps this is asking much given the current state of conservative punditocracy, but hopefully, the Post will figure out a way to rise above the froth.

At Agitprop, we suggest Ben plagiarize this ...

when you sleep w/ fleas....

"We also remain committed to representing a broad spectrum of ideas and ideologies in our Opinions area."
You're kidding, right? Because you can hardly claim that hiring an infant with neither writing skill nor journalistic integrity represents anything but supreme idiocy on your part. If you want to represent a "broad spectrum" don't just hire the first right-wing blow-hard you can get your hands on, and then stop with that side of the spectrum.

You have certainly lost what little remaining credibility you had over what can only be seen as brown-nosing the extreme right wing. What a bunch of fools you all are. Especially you, Jim. Your resignation should be next.

If you want to have "diversity" in ideology, start a Lib-Con cross-fire feature and hire a rotating cadre of libs and cons to write -- don't give it to one particularly obnoxious voice. There are plenty of lib-con bloggers out there, with names and reputations, who'd be happy to oblige. But give up the College Republicans idea, won't you?

deleted

PWNED? Nah --

WASHINGTONPWNED

P.S. Do a better job of vetting your job candidates next time. . .

This guy not only plagiarised, he also made up quotes (ie Tim Russert to Bush).

He came from a section of the conservative blogosphere where factual truth is simply not treated with the same respect as it is by professional journalists.

There may be left-wing bloggers who play just as fast and loose with facts. They shouldn't be hired either.

I don't care about this guy calling MLK's wife a communist if he can back it up. Strong opinions are fine. Dodgy facts aren't.

Hire any fire-breathing nutter you like, WaPo, but make sure that they treat FACTS according to normal journalistic standards.

ie Not WMD-related journalistic standards.

Krauthammer, for example, is a madman in my opinion, but he's usually an honest madman these days.

I hope that the washingtonpost.com will take a cold hard look at the blogospere(that up till now it has disdained) and realize that fast fact checking is one of its benefits.

IMHO the washingtonpost.com owes a debt of gratitude to those bloggers who care about uncovering the truth and holding people accountable - whatever position they might hold.

shorter Jim Brady....

Hey, we intended to find ourselves a White Male with White House connections without giving anyone else a chance, and we wanted to hire a racist who wrote under a pseudonym, who engaged in vicious personal attacks against public figures, who made up quotes from actual journalists....

but when we found out he copied some film reviews, he had to go.

*************

Sorry Brady, but this doesn't cut it.

Here's one thing for sure, the right wing bloviations have become quite a bore. Passe. The trend has borne again itself out, the 15 minutes are up. Just not new and fresh anymore.

Hey Ben

Truly: Walk through this firestorm, check yourself, talk to someone, apologize, and heal yourself. Here's an honest wish for good things for you and your family.

I hear he's having beers with Jayson Blair and Janet Cooke.

Face it, Mr. Brady, you don't REMOTELY understand the blogosphere -- in fact, your contempt for it marks your every comment on it. You hired this third-rate hack without an ounce of real-world experience, doubtless because some Republicans spoke well of him over glasses of scotch at parties. Next time, how about finding somebody who actually has DONE something besides steal material?

Whoever hired Domenech should resign as well. It took just a couple of *days* for bloggers to find copious examples of his plagiarism. Did you not do even the slightest investigation into his writing?? Or did the thought not even cross your minds, since you were so interested in embracing right-wing fundamentalist propaganda that quality checks did not enter into it? It's an absolute disgrace that the newspaper that revealed Watergate has proven to be so incompetent and so willing to print such partisan drivel.

If you don't feel humiliated, you are not a journalist.

Who hired him personally and what consequeces will there be for lack of fact checking? Finally, what assurances can we have that future hires by this paper are not so tainted? Have you changed your hiring processes etc etc?

What is not said is why the Post, which has become a center-right organ with hardly any willingness to challenge the outright lies of this government, felt it was necessary to put a racist, ultra-right wing bigot, with no counterbalance, on its website. Is the Post determined to become the Print Fox News?

The original hiring was unforgiveable. Balance -- the WaPo's stated goal is not achieved with placing hacks -- regardless of perspective -- among its ranks of writers. It is achieved with thoughtful, probative analysis, investigating and reporting. Sometimes there are not two equally valid sides to a story. Sometimes a lie is simply a lie. And sometimes breaking the law . . . you get the idea.

I'm looking forward to the biopic on Lifetime.

It's too bad WaPo could not be smart enough to fire this guy. This guy has actually saved face by resigning, and now the WaPo stand alone in its shame.

How did this guy get hired? There used to be a time when being hired by WaPo was an honor. Now apparently a twentysomething college TV and film critic could get an all-important political columnist job so long as his parents have a politician or two in their pocket! For shame, WaPo, for shame.

Mr. Brady,

It seems that since you hired Mr. Domenech, you should take more responsibility for this mess. A good way to take responsibility would be for you to actually answer the questions and comments posted in the other two threads on this topic.

It seems that by ignoring your readers here that you really don't get the Internet, nor I must add, journalism.

Great. You have responded to the symptom, but not the underlying problem. Symptom: immature, unprofessional writer violates journalistic standards. Problem: WaPo does not believe WaPo.com writers need to be mature, professional writers.

What the heck is going on here? First WaPo takes its cues from Patrick Ruffani. Then it hands the reigns to punk that calls MLK, Jr. a "communist". Guess what? The world is more complicated than a late-night bull session at the frat house. Try acting like grownups.

One thing that I agree with Brady about: "this event, among other things, testifies to the positive and powerful role that the Internet can play in the the practice of journalism." Too bad that was such a painful lesson for Brady to learn.

Now, how about releasing that evidence that Abramoff "directed" donations to Democrats?

For perpetrating this hoax and discrediting what was once a reputable and highly esteemed newspaper, can we now expect Mr. Brady's resignation?

Jim Brady:

How about a mea culpa, an apology to your readers, accountability for poor vetting, sloppy hiring practices?

What a disgrace!

I find your arrogance insufferable.

Mr. Brady,

For four-plus years I wrote a weblog of center-right opinion, news analysis, media crit and original journalism, at my own eponymous blog site, www.billhobbs.com

Center-right may not quite describe me accurately. Pragmatic libertarian conservative is more like it.

I am a redstate resident (Tennessee) and a journalist by training, and more than a decade of experience, and I would love to replace Ben Domenech on the WashingtonPost.com site. I've never committed plagiarism. And because I'm not located "inside the Beltway" and have never worked for a Republican political campaign, I'm not likely to just repeat GOP talking points.

Bill Hobbs
Nashville, TN
www.billhobbs.com

I agree with Beelzebud. The only real way to handle this is with another blogger ethics conference? However else will we find out where these nasty, attacking left wing b logs get their funding? /snark>

As an adjunct professor at a local Philadelphia university who regularly teaches writing intensive courses and as an editor of two science journals, I am appalled that no one at the Post had the slightest inclination to make a simple Google search after noting obvious stylistic incongruities in this young man's writing. Shame. Somebody's head, other than the one on the shoulders of the conservative blogger, has to roll.

Actually, it seemed like a perfect hire to represent "Red America": a hateful, no talent liar.

As you think about potential replacements, please remember this:

THE MEDIA ARE NOT SUPPOSED TO BE BALANCED.
THEY ARE SUPPOSED TO BE LIBERAL.

'Liberal' means 'pertaining to freedom.' Your job as a major media outlet is to give your readers the information they need to make sure that their leaders are doing their jobs: running our cities, states, and country well, protecting our freedoms, and providing for our common defense. To do that, you have to be skeptical of everything that somebody in power tells you. Question authority, and all that.

'Conservative' means 'tending to support traditional values and authority.' A 'conservative journalist' does not have the skills or desire to do the job of a journalist.

Stop aiming for balance. Do your job.

This is ridiculous. Are you going to force Froomkin to resign now, too? He's a plagiarist as well. But I guess you don't mind, since he's a libera like you are.

------------------------
Leonidas
http://scrutator.net

You might, then, consider filling whatever perceived demographic slot with somebody with actual journalistic experience, not the paid-GOP-shill son of a paid-GOP-shill.

So, was that last sentiment a signal that you'll hire another frothing-at-the-mouth to replace this guy? If you feel WaPo needs a "social conservative" voice as Kurtz reports, can you tell me: who at the Post is a "social liberal" voice?

Maybe if you didn't spend so much time staring at your navels you'd catch this kind of stuff in the first place.

I use to recommend the WaPo to my students for coverage of Washington politics...

Not any more.

Amateur hour!

I would hire Glenn Greenwald. Great writer, and like all good Conservatives he sticks up for the rule of law and works for clean government.

I appreciate the lack of spin in this announcement.

Hopefully the washingtonpost.com is turning over a new leaf.

I don't understand why it took the blogosphere 48 hours to compile a seemingly endless archive of past trangressions, while the Washington Post appears to never have encountered any of it before hiring him.

I've been supportive of the Post in the past, but this is a severe blow to its journalistic integrity and editorial practice.

If you're going to hire another movement conservative for "Red America," why not check out his past? Why not then hire one of the many talented liberal bloggers for a "Blue America?" I don't understand why this is anything other than good common sense.

Thank you for doing the right thing in forcing this resignation. It can't be easy to admit a mistake in such a charged environment, even if it is partially charged because you have tried to lable all of your detractors as extremist know-nothings. I hope this is the first step in a genuine road to recovery. You have a long walk ahead to get your credibility back, but this is definitely the right first step. Congratulations.

I have a suggestion: hire bruce bartlett.

he's impeccably conservative, and unlike many of the conservatives who write for your oped page, he is an honest man. it would be a delight to see him posting at your online operation; it might even embarass some of the dishonest conservatives who dominate your op-ed discourse to clean up their acts a touch.

meanwhile, i'm delighted to learn that you are committed to a broad spectrum of ideas in your editorial commentary, since i'm sure that e.j. dionee feels mighty lonely. there are loads of honest, good writers who might keep him company and extend your broad spectrum so that it actually, you know, broadens.

Once again, blogs have to do the Post's job.

Good job, Mr. Brady.

I, of course, blame the media for ignoring the majority of Ben's work that was original and instead focusing on the ten or fifteen percent that he stole. This will clearly embolden the terrorists. It's what they want.

Well, I think we have all learned a lesson here.

Clearly, The Post feels the need to hire a rightwing partisan operative to placate the ceaseless claims of "bias" from the activist right (and naturally doesn't feel the need to actually "balance" such a hire with an equivalent person from the left.)

but next time, remember that rightwingers these days specialize in just MAKING STUFF UP to suit their ideology.

You hired someone so BAD at making up stuff that he had to cut and paste from other writers. Over and over again.

This was obviously a mistake. So, get a genuine ideological fabulist next time, OK? You know, someone with a secret and TOTALLY TRUE therory about Saddm's WMD's being hidden in Sandy Berger's pants or something.

When we hired Domenech, we were not aware of any allegations that he had plagiarized any of his past writings.

Did you vet any of his previous writings or simply lay down and bow to the inside the beltway pressure? 15 minutes of Googling would've been all that is neccessary.

You look like complete fools.

Dear Mr. Brady:

I have been quick to criticize the Washington Post for its slow & antiquated handling of all things blog, and am glad to see that you took care of this quickly. Please take the lessons you've undoubtedly learned in this fiasco to heart. We want honesty, not spin. We want truth, not 'balance.' Give us the real thing and you can't go wrong. And for the love of God, do a little research into who you hire so you don't make complete fools of yourselves again.

Hi, Jim - good going. You recognized a problem and you investigated. I am grateful the problem took care if itself.

I encourage you to use Google tools to do a simple vetting of writers. All this could've been avoided.

Good for you guys. And thanks for giving the nation such a valuable learning opportunity on the matter of the personal integrity of well-connected conservatives!

I think the most offensive comment I have read on the Washington post blogsite, besides all the absolutely disgusting comments coming from the redstate.com members who flocked to your site to cheer their leader, has been the claim by the editor of your paper that no one knew Ben Domenech was a serial plagiarist.

why this is offensive is that its just not credible because it seems to have taken the real blogoshere less then 24 hours to find at least a dozen examples of Domenech's crimes by searching on GOOGLE...so if a simple google search brought up the plagiarized work of the blogger of red America how am I to believe that the mighty Washington post didn't have the wherewithal to check this kid out before putting their brand name and their $$$ behind him?
I think more then just Ben Domenech needs to step up to the plate and RESIGN effective immediately.... I think Mr Bradley should resign, and anyone else who had a hand in dragging the once good name of the Washington post through the mud like this.

The excuse of 'we didn't know" is offensive..about as offensive as it gets.

Until someone at the Washington post comes forth and takes responsibility for this fiasco MY current opinion of the Washington Post will remain the same. You have lost any credibility you had...you know what you really have to do to try and get it back, dumping Ben Domenech is merely the first step.

Buh-bye!

I hearby volunteer to take Ben's place. I'm just as qualified as Ben was, by which I mean that I've never published anything I've actually written in any major publication... but I do HATE HILLARY CLINTON.

I certainly wouldn't mind the $$$ though.

It speaks to the drastic diminishment in the quality of your organization, that no one thought to do a little journalistic investigating into this guy's background and qualifications. As you can plainly see, it wasn't hard to find out the truth, if only The Post.com had made an effort. Please, if you indeed search for another blogger, try to have some integrity in the process. First, make efforts to find and hire someone with real journalistic credentials. 2nd - do a basic background check, searching for any plagerism, or hateful, racist or bigoted attitudes. If you choose to repeat the process of hiring an obviously partisan non-journalist that leans to the right, then provide REAL BALANCE by hiring a second blogger, one that leans to the left. That would be balance my friend.

Mr. Brady:

First, what took so long? The evidence was clear and damning yesterday.

Second, why did you hire such a clear hatemonger? It's one thing to zing the other side, it's quite another to call them commies with no proof. I don't think other bloggers under your roof have called Bush an oven-stuffing Nazi. And I doubt you would stand for it if they did.

And third, hiring someone with no journalism experience and no interest in debating was a very bad idea. I'm sure that if that is what you wanted, you could have found someone as ignorant and hate-filled on the other side of the political spectrum and let the two of them have an ongoing food fight.

WP.com should be ashamed of itself. This ain't "fresh." It's revolting. I am sure there are conservatives out there who could present their case without calling their opponents commies and traitors.

I'd like to point out that the investigative process by which Domenech's plagiarism was uncovered has applications in other areas of journalism. You folks may want to look into it.

Sometimes, the "two sides of the story" are that one person's lying, and one person isn't.

"When we hired Domenech, we were not aware of any allegations that he had plagiarized any of his past writings"

Well, Jimbo, in your defense, it was real hard to find out....

You know, Jim, if you're blind hatred of the mean ol' "liberal" bloggers who have already caught you with your pants down several times already hadn't gotten in the way, you might have seen the problems with this hire from the beginning. The racism, the hatred, the plagiarizing... all red flags I'm sure would have been caught if a kid his age was trying to get on the "print" side of the paper. But you were so goddamned determined to "stick it" to the liberals, you just picked the first little brownshirt you could find.

You f***ed up. Again. Eat it.

"When we hired Domenech, we were not aware of any allegations that he had plagiarized any of his past writings."

To John Gage

When did Brady say he had no responsibility to check out the background of who he hires? Did you actually read the letter?

This might be a good time in young Ben's life to consider enlisting in the Marine Corps. Several months of boot camp, infantry training, and a tour or two of western Iraq may help him overcome this disappointment. He might even grow up.

Might I assume that the person who "vetted" young Ben is currently exploring other career options as well? Maybe next time you're evaluating the writing talent of a prospective hire, you might want to ensure that it's really that person's own writing you're evaluating. That seems pretty basic to me.

Jim Brady, Executive Editor, of washingtonpost.com seems unable to do his job. He can neither handle criticism, respond to readers, nor apparently vet new hires.

Mr. Brady should also resign.

His salary could be spent for an online omsbudsman.

The tone in some of these comments is more negative than I think is necessary. WaPo.com goofed, they investigated, the guy resigned. A better background check and more experience would be a plus in a future hire, but it's not for us to decide who the WaPo hires.

So it certainly wasn't the outlandish racism, the vitriolic partisan shilling, the complete and utter lack of journalistic experience, let alone life experience in general.....

no, we are to believe it was because he was actually a plagiarist. Sure Jim, splendid job finally catching onto and maintaining that "journalistic integrity" thingy you seemingly know so well.

"Despite the turn this has taken, we believe this event, among other things, testifies to the positive and powerful role that the Internet can play in the the practice of journalism."

Ahh yes, Jim, welcome to the new millenium. Suppose, just suppose the WaPost can actually get off their lazy asses for once and perform a bit of investigative journalism of their own, rather than being flat out embarrassed and shlacked by bloggers who have to do your damn homework for you?

Is that really too much to ask of our modern day media? Suppose you can finally realize that you need to dump the regurgitation of talking points and actually do what the people want and deserve from you - actual investigation of facts?

Or is that more of that darned wishful thinking?

So if he had not resigned, would you have fired him? Somehow, I doubt it. After all, judging from Howard Kurtz's column, you were sticking by Domenech even when all signs pointed toward the fact that he was unqualified for thr position. In light of all your previous mishaps, perhaps the Washington Post organization needs to look into whether Jim Brady is qualified for his job.

I applaud you in that you "remain committed to representing a broad spectrum of ideas and ideologies in our Opinions area." However, I fail to understand how having a conservative blogger and no liberal blogger represents "a broad spectrum of ideas."

Will you hire a left-leaning media critic to balance Kurtz? And a left-leaning ombudsman to balance Howell?

Allow me to suggest some sentences which would have appeared in your posting, Jim Brady, if you thought that wapo.com's integrity was important:

``And that's when I said, "You can't quit, you're fired!"''

It has been suggested elsewhere that young Mr. Domenech enlist immediately to serve his country as an effort to make amends and restore his reputation before he takes another position withing the Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy.

May I suggest minesweeper?

Mr. Brady, will this finally--after all of the embarrassing missteps of the last several months--result in some introspection on your part and that of Deborah Howell's? Is there anything at all that would cause you to listen to your critics and actually consider that you may not have all the answers?

The bigger picture is not your lack of due diligence in hiring an unqualified and unvetted political hack. Your first mistake is in thinking the Post somehow lacks for Conservative voices. It does not, and your fallback position should not be to hire a "better qualified" Conservative. Rather, it should be to not hire another partisan Conservative at all.

Dear Jim Brady --

When are you going to hire someone to do your 'balance' thing on the crazy far-out right-wing stuff that Ron Nessen writes every day in his blog?

Based on today's installment from the old Nixon/Ford hand (abolishing Social Security, Medicare, the works...) you'll need at least a radical revolutionary Marxist.

A nation grieves.

This is the danger of nepotism. You hire well-connected but unqualified young sleazeball because his dad works for the White House, and don't even bother to vet him before doing so because you're just so sure he's the "right kind of people."

What other explanation is there? It's not the guy's writing, that is certain. Just read some of it. Jesus. I could plagiarize better than that in the 7th grade. (And did, quite a bit.)

Jim, in an email I sent to you a while back I criticized you and many Post.com writers for their attempts at artificially balancing stories instead of printing the facts as they are known. I didn't believe that this is what reporters do. You replied to me that you disagreed with me on this point.

I guess this bears that comment out. You artificially tried to balance the output of the Post.com without regard to the quality of the material. You are the person who should resign. (I can forward you both of our emails if you need to have your memory refreshed.)

Can you follow some more of Debra H. suggestions. I really enjoyed the debacles she cause every time she makes a suggestion

And this question should be asked until Brady comes up with an answer: WHERE'S THE LIBERAL BLOGGER?

Mr. Brady:

I want a job, too!

All of the research on Domenech's plagiarism was done in the past 48 hours, and turned up a vast multitude of blatant pilfering from other authors.

Why couldn't the Washington Post have looked into this guy more carefully before trumpeting him as the great voice of Red America? I mean, you know Google exists, right?

I'm very sorry to see Ben leave. I think its very important to balance Froomkin's facts and analysis with name-calling and plagerism. Who are you going to find that's as good as Ben?

And nice job, Brady. You're doing at least as good a job at the Post as Brownie did at FEMA. Man, to think how much I used to respect the Post....

I too was disturbed that the Post was hiring a conservative blogger and yet had no plans to balance this with a liberal blogger. As much as we like Froomkin, he ain't no progressive liberal.
Why am I complaining? Well, I really don't know because I have many alternative sources of liberal news and I go to foreign newspapers to get away from your paper's bias.

I guess the Post isn't ever going to be one of those sources. Too bad. So sad.
However, it's your bed and you get to lay in it. I doubt I'll be watching. No one got to be a spectator when the Titanic sank, but this century it's a whole new ballgame. Good luck lying in bed on the deck.

Out of interest, Jim, why was Domenech allowed to resign? Wouldn't a history of plagarism merit washingtonpost.com to FIRE him?

Hey, I've got an idea for a new rightwing blogger for you: Howie Kurtz.

Jim says:

"We also remain committed to representing a broad spectrum of ideas and ideologies in our Opinions area."

I say:

How about you hire a real blogger, not a plagiarizing hate-monger, maybe even a progressive blogger, to prove the veracity of the above statement... I don't know, maybe Jane Hamsher of Firedoglake.com...

Thanks, though we are still waiting for the evidence that Howell claimed the Post had re: Abramoff's supposed direction of funds by the Indian tribes to, rather than away from -- as all other evidence indicates, Democratic candidates.

Thank you Mr. Brady for coming forward. Better late than never.

But you're really asking for trouble -- literally clasping an asp to your bosom -- when you hire people whose goal is to destroy you.

Do you really not understand that rightwingers in this country are neo-fascists who are bent on undermining the whole institution of journalism? They are systematically destroying your crediblity. Look at CBS. Look at what Judith Miller did to the New York Times. And now what this kid has done to you.

The really tragic thing for all of us is, you are helping them. They hand you a gun and tell you to shoot yourself in the foot -- and you do. Must be that beaten wife syndrom thing.

As Charles Bukowski once wrote - 'the fools are fooled again'...

Since when did "surface" become a transitive verb?

"We appreciate the speed and thoroughness with which our readers and media outlets surfaced these allegations."

I hate to be such a grammatical nit picker, but but this yet another case of Jim Brady's sloppiness.

I'd really like to know the decision-making process behind hiring Domenech. But I won't hold my breath.

By the way, let's take bets: which think tank or political magazine will hire our new martyr? Will it be Heritage? Perhaps he'll join Scooter at the Hudson Institute?

What color is your golden parachute?

LOL ... WaPo's spiral downward continues apace.

LMFAO ...

Boyd and Raines resigned over Jayson Blair. Are you going to do the honorable thing, or will The Post force you to do it?

Standard Rethug excuse these days: It wasn't me, it was my evil, twin clone Skippy. In Benny's case, it must have been his evil twin clone Lenny.

Forget all the talk about left or right. Hire somebody that SPEAKS THE TRUTH!

"It's impossible to reach good conclusions with bad information. . . . We're all entitled to our own opinions. But none of us can afford to be wrong in our facts."

Mort Crim

I think Mr. Brady forgot this sentence:

"I take full responsibility and on behalf of the Washington Post, I apologize for this whole mess. We can and will do better."

With all the criticism that has been levied against liberal blogs by various voices of WashingtonPost.com and the Washington Post, will you directly acknowledge the role of places like Daily Kos in quickly calling attention to the questionable journalistic practices of Ben Domenech?

Second, what does this say about the Post's vetting process for hiring? Do you research the writing of 24 year olds offered prominent positions with WashPost.com?

Third, can you provide your perspective on Domenech's posting / writing of some rather racist material over the past several years?

While I tend 'conservative' in a classical sense, unlike these ChickhenHawks so dominant in today's Republican Party, I actually volunteered and put my life on the line when the nation went to war. This example of Domenech's rather questionable ethics (after all, plagiarism is stealing, and "Thou shalt not steal" remains, as far as I am aware, one of the 10 Commandments) is one of the reasons that I am a 'very troubled' conservative.

Mr. Brady-

All I can say is that this hurt the Post more than it hurt Mr. Domenech. It makes one ask who makes the decisions at the Post, and who actually protects the respect and gravitas the Post earned over the years.

Where is the journalistic enterprise that broke Watergate sir?

I was more fully vetted for a job at Petrini's. You just wanted to appease the loonies of the right wing and you got caught--and as Cheney would say, "big time." A pox on you and that rag you call a newpaper.

Hey Jim,
Here's an idea. Why not just buy the rights to reprint from blogers already on the web? Sort of a best of the web comentary. And here's another idea. Why not include real bonified liberals as well as conservative bigots? Just a thought.

Hiring conservative writers to cover politics and government is like hiring flat-earth society members to cover science. Conservatives are generally ignorant, uncouth, uninformed, and dishonest.

May I suggest you vet any future hires a tad more thoroughly?

May I suggest whoever hired Ben be taken to the woodshed?

May I suggest hiring a partisan flack to balance journalism is an inherently flawed policy?

The Domenech Debacle is your latest attempt to match the NYT in the race to
reach rock bottom in terms of journalistic integrity.

Your stonewalling on the plagiarism issue is consistent with every other egregious error you've committed in recent years -- the worst being that you reported as news Scott McClellan's statement that Rove &
Libby weren't involved in the Plame scandal when you knew full well that it
was a lie. You held this back until after the election. For that you deserve
eternal journalistic damnation.

The Domenech Plagiarism Debacle is a mere misdemeanor in comparison to the high
treason of altering the outcome of a presidential election.

As a serious suggestion, you might hire someone like Bob Barr. He's very a strong conservative but he's intellectually honest enough to stand up for privacy rights when he thinks they're being violated.

I realize you're looking for someone who will articulate arguments in defense of the Bush administration. It is getting harder and harder to mount any sort of defense. If you can find a thoughtful and articulate voice to do so, you will not have quite the firestorm that was provoked.

But it is not the Post's job to make sure that every opinion, however silly or ignorant, is given a voice. When there is no defense of an action beyond the talking points, and the talking points are laughable, it is incumbent upon any serious journalist to say so.

"Plagiarism is perhaps the most serious offense that a writer can commit or be accused of."

Executive Editors shouldn't end sentences with prepositions... or hire racists for the sake of perceived balance.

The intellectual dishonesty that Mr. Domenech displayed from his first posts should have been a red flag to the Washpost hiring board, He described Democrats who win elections as being victorious because they had Republican ideas. His statement is a logical impossibility.
In our current political environment, we are forced to pretend that favored conservative ideas such as intelligent design or Democracy at the point of a gun are not nonsense.
The Washpost does Conservatives no favors when it assumes that intellectual rigor is liberal.

I would like to address any WaPo reporters who might happen upon this thread: If you don't like what is happening, you better do something about it.

I imagine you spent a considerable amount of time getting to where you are. Straight A's in high school. Late nights working at the Ivy League paper. Unpaid internships in the summer, gathering journalistic experience. Building a glowing resume, so that finally, after years of hard work, you obtain a position at one of the two premier newspapers in the country. And now, after you have reached your goal, you find that management is flushing the paper's reputation down the toilet.

Is that really what you have worked for?

Unlike many Republicans, who have a deep anti-intellectual streak, most Democrats take no pleasure in criticizing the premier journalistic institutions in this country. We understand that America NEEDS a healthy, active, questioning, ethical journalistic community. We don't want to destroy the Post or any other paper any more than we want to live under single party rule...even if it were the Democratic party. We relish alternative views, constructive criticism, and debate.

But, if the writers, editors, publishers, and ombudspersons of either the Washington Post or washingtonpost.com insist on making their publications embarasements to journalism, we will point it out. I suggest you all act before it is too late.

Hey Ben,

I need some work, and I think I meet all your qualifications and come up to your high standards. My friend Jim Guckert says I have all the necessary qualifications for a right-wing journalist and blogger.

Please hire me to replace Domenech. I've got connections in the white House and I know they are real happy with all the "journalistic" favors you've done them
with the elections and this great war we're having

Claude Allen

Steve,
if this was the first time WaPo.com has goofed, as you put it, I think we would be a little more forgiving. As is, however, this is merely another chapter in a book full of errors made by Jim Brady. In light of that, I think it is appropriate to question whether or not he is more of a liability than an asset to the Washington Post organization.

The last line of Brady's announcement strikes me as lacking in contrition, and artelssly mired in self-justification. The decision to hire an overt partisan in the first place was wrong. It just happens to be incredibly wrong since it turns out one didn't have to dig very hard to discover the guys is a plagarist. So, under pressure from readers opposing the hire the response is to not even give the guy a careful review. It's as if since liberals and centrists opposed the guy, the response is to be even less critical in giving the platform of the Post over to partisan conservatives. It seems the Post is responding to reasoned critique the way the adminstration has-- with increasingly thoughtless, raw assertion of conservative power. But is it such a surprise that conservative mouthpieces at the Post are turning out to be unprincipled?

"When we hired Domenech, we were not aware of any allegations that he had plagiarized any of his past writings."
Is that the same as not being aware of any facts?

Mr. Brady, it really does seem you don't like us. The intelligent readers. You are so full of defensiveness (it wasn't on our watch, not our fault), that you can't see that your readers are owed an apology.

I agree completely with Earl above. It seems the Post is so worried about irritating the right, that it won't stand up for the huge proportion of its readers who are not right-wing partisans. You are blessed with the an increibly bright, progressive readership, and you seem to treat your readership with contempt.

So let me get this straight. If someone reports the facts, hard as they may be, they are a no-good liberal. But a morally upright real American has to lie, that would be a Conservative. Jeez, is there such a thing as an honest Republican?!

And the Post thinks this makes things okay? The blogosphere did their homework for them, and rooted out this rat. If it wasn't for the likes of Daily Kos, Crooks and Liars, and Joshua Marshall, this guy would still be spewing GOP cant. The Post has some explaining to do.

How embarrassing -- for the WaPo.

Did anyone even bother to check this guy's background? Are there no interns that know how to use Google?

Well, move forward. Hire two bloggers, both vetted, representing Left and Right.

And while you're at it, get some balance by hiring some progressive columnists.

Your unseemly sucking up to the current regime won't be treated well when this era's history is written.

No, rumple. It's: "Fool me once, uhhh, shame on, uhhhhh, shame on you. Uhhhhh. Fool me, you can't, you can't get fooled again." George W. Bush

I guess bigotry is forgivable if you make a half-hearted apology, but plagiarism is not?

And I don't think plagiarism is any worse that failure to scrutinize the president during a time of war.

Interesting defense of Ben from his buddies at Red State. Seems all those authors gave him permission to steal, but the dog ate all the permission slips. This is what we are dealing with on the far right...not just liars, but incompetent ones.

"And now those opposed to Ben have googled prior writings that on the surface appear suspicious, but only because permissions obtained and judgments made offline were not reflected online by an out dated and out of business campus newspaper. But that's all the opponents want - just enough to sabotage a career, though in the process they will sabotage themselves. Facts have no meaning. Only impressions have any bearing on this. The charges of plagarism are false, meant to bring down a good and honest man. The presented facts to prove plagarism are specious -- products of shoddy work. One could easily think the producers of 60 Minutes II were behind them. "

http://redstate.org/story/2006/3/23/22434/5436

**********

The understanding is that WaPo hired an ultra-right-wing partisan like Ben to provide a "balance."

What needs to be balanced? The existing journalists who report based on facts? So the balance would be to report with Non-Facts (ie: LIES).

Might as well higher a theif to tell lies.

How about you just stick with the truth when it comes to your hiring practices.

By the way, I think it would really strike a blow in favor of openness and disclosure if the Post explains the decisions that led up to Domenech's hiring. The Post's readers deserve to know how he qualified for this position and why he was hired.

I'm a dailykos-reading liberal, but I get turned off by all of salt-in-the-wound triumphant strutting. Domenech is gone, "RedAmerica" was an embarassing failure, and Jim Brady has thanked those who have worked to unearth all of this material.

Seems to me like a mutual understanding that this won't happen again is all we really need here. Gloating is ugly, no matter who does it.

Mr. Brady

well, if you are looking for a replacement for Ben, please consider me.

1) Like Ben, I've written under a psuedonym (actually, two --- "ami" over at Pressthink, and "bushsux" over at Kos)

2) I've engaged in ad hominem attacks like Ben (Just as Jay Rosen why I had to write under a pseudonym)

3) My opinions and ideas are well out of the mainstream, like Bens

4) Like Ben, as a "writer", I pretty much suck.

5) Unlike Ben, I don't plagarize. In fact, I have a reputation for doing original research, attributing quotes and citing sources, and giving credit where it is due....

Heck, I think I sound perfect for the job.... :)

I cannot imagine an organization that would let an error of this magnitude, committed publicly, stand without serious reprisals for those responsible.

Mr. Brady, your tenure as Executive Editor must end today. And there must be a public analysis of this editorial and personnel practices failure. There is something seriously wrong with a news-gathering organization that was unable to lift up the rocks under which Ben's plagiarism lay. Mr. Brady, your pretension to understand the internet and online journalism are dashed by this failure.

I am wondering who ombuds Washington Post Online (or WPNI) now that Ms. Howell has removed herself from this fray. I hope WPNI's publisher can take a break from polishing all those exciting awards to address this issue, first internally and then with us, the readers.

We're not commenters, we are readers.

PS. There is a distinction with a difference between calling Mrs. King a "Communist" as Ben did, and a "communist." The capital C is all. Commenters here and elsewhere would do well to respect it; Howard Kurtz apparently doesn't.

Mr. Brady, you weren't aware of Ben's dishonesty because you weren't doing your own job.

You should resign, too.

Who knew that hiring a 24 year old, home-schooled, young-earth-creationist, racist, right-wing hack would turn out to be a bad thing...

At this rate it shouldn't be long before The Post is competing with the National Enquirer for rack space at the checkout lines in Wal-Mart.

The Post is crying crocodile tears. How could the post NOT have known about his poor writing skills? Simple web queries before his hiring would have immediately uncovered his inabiltiy to write original material. How could the post NOT have taken the time to proprly vet a potential employee?

In truth, after looking at the examples of plagiarism, it does not seem to be deliberate. These examples simply show someone with a lot of opinions but not a great deal of confidence is his writing skill. This is what I see from younger undergraduates.

*insert heavy sigh here*

This is why big money papers like the Post will be going the way of the dinosaur. Long live the blog!

"WAAAH! Those mean bloggers are picking on me."

Lame, Jim, lame.

this wasn't an honorable conservative with a fatal flaw. this kind of wingnuttery *breeds* behavior like this. He was 24, unfinished with college, with a history of getting advantages solely through connections. In other words, he was *taught* to coast, and his coasting (which includes plagiarism) was rewarded.

The Post needs to remember that that kind of laziness - which includes laziness in opinions, laziness in investigation, laziness in integrity - is NOT an ideology. It's just embarrassing incompetence, which is also something that The Post was guilty of itself in this case.

If you want an ideological balance, find a real, honest conservative. If you want a balanced newspaper, do some soul-searching already - it's long overdue - and relearn how to reconcile evenhandedness with fact and truth.

There should be some housecleaning at the Post, as well. I'd really like to see how the Post came to hire Domenech and what process was used.

As for Bill Hobbs not being "likely to just repeat GOP talking points"--that's pretty funny. Those of us familiar with Hobbs know that's all he does.

If'un y'all are a-lookin' fer a real, right wing patriot blogger, why don't you guys hire the Good Gin'rull J.C. Christian?

"When we hired Domenech, we were not aware of any allegations that he had plagiarized any of his past writings."

Yeah, I'm afraid I'm going to have to jump on the "Then you should really learn to use Google" bandwagon here.

This is just absurd. Did you do any sort of background check on this guy at all? There's only one rational explanation for how you managed to miss this before hiring him: you didn't look for it.

Mr. Brady,
When can we expect your resignation?

Why was this person allowed to resign? I would expect that someone who had lied and stolen his way into a prominent position would have been fired for doing so.

The Washington Post owes this thief nothing, and yet even when he's leaving disgraced, they still see fit to soften the blow.

One must wonder for the reason why.

"At this rate it shouldn't be long before The Post is competing with the National Enquirer for rack space at the checkout lines in Wal-Mart."

Buy the Enquirer. It's also full of you-know-what, but at least it doesn't make a pretense of doing serious journalism and it's a more entertaining read.

Next time you want to hire someone as a perceived balance to Dan Froomkin, at least have them be somewhat more than half Froomkin's age.

Please SPARE ME THE MAINSTREAM MEDIA EQUIVOCATING! I'm sure you enjoyed "Good Night, and Good Luck." Here's something else from Ed Murrow you should pay heed to: Some journalists' idea of objectivity is giving Judas equal time with Jesus.

Doooooofus-nech's Red Dawn is over!

space, that was an excellent argument, soiled only slightly by your spelling error near the very end.

i do hope that the executive editors realize that most people here are not Post-bashers. many of us read the Post every day, and most of us continue to think of it as THE premier newspaper in the country. the problems at the post have never had to do with the reporters: the likes of milbank, pincus, priest et al are hard to summit. we know you have great, hard hitting reporters and a great tradition of excellence. that's why your readers are so demanding that you hold yourself to the highest standards.

your previous omsbudman, michael getler, would understand. he, better than most, understood that WaPo readers are demanding because we *love* the Post.

Tunesmith, no disrespect intended, but an honest conservative?! I really don't believe there is such a thing anymore. Show me a TRUE
honest conservative and I'll show you a Democrat. Any one that is Conservative and honest has left the GOP about 6 months ago.

Journalistic integrity?
Bwahahahahahahahahaha!!!

You want "to maintain our journalistic integrity"? God, Brady, you gave that up long ago. Little Ben was just another symptom.

Reporters report facts, and very often those do not fit a rightwing world view. Therefore it is necessary to hire a movement conservative to write lies ooops, from the rightwing point of view to balance out the facts coming from the "other side."

Will corporate media ever get this, or will they continue to turn their products into embarassing jokes that are turning the USA into a fascist corporatocracy?

Hey Ben

Truly: Walk through this firestorm, check yourself, talk to someone, apologize, and shoot yourself. Here's an honest wish for good things for you and your family.

Did this debacle last a week? These internets are sho' powerful tools in the War Against Brains.

One can't but wonder who pushed the WaPo to hire ben, especially in light of the public Fromkin-trashing and revelations that people from on high were upset with Fromkin's writing.

It certainly looks like Ben's name was tendered as someone the post should hire to counter Fromkin. Was it from the White House, or its agents, assigns, etc?

It looks like the GOP actually has a project going with the media much like the K street project, only instead of lobbyists and money, it's journalists/media figures and favorable coverage they lock down. This is separate from the administration's out-right paying of journalists to write favorable stuff.

One thing for sure, if they don't fire Jim, he's not going to be very effective at implementing in the future what he was attempting to with the hiring of Ben. Not after this blew up in his face the way it did. Even the Ombudsman is running away, even after all Jim did for her.

It's time for Jim Brady to resign as well.

Mr.Brady,I thought how you worded your response was very professional. Please understand that alot of us liberals DO NOT MIND a conservative blogger,we were just freaked out when we found out how much this guy stole from real journalists,etc.

I havent read all of the comments above yet but any true political junkie left or right does not feel threatened by opposing opinions,as long as they are true to the facts. What was really shocking is the thought you hired him without knowing any of this?? Please vet your replacement with a fine tooth comb and hopefully he or she will be as fine a journalist as the excellent Froomkin,Kurtz,and Milbank!

Thanks, Ben, for resigning. Mr. Brady - it's your turn, now. You should recognize the damage you are doing to The Post and be a man and step down.

Oh, and now that Ben is out of work, maybe he should think about supporting that war he loves so much.

Enlist, Ben. Enlist.

Jim Brady should resign.

I'll just echo everyone who already said that he should never have been hired in the first place. Also, if the purpose of hiring a right wing fundie fruitcake was to "balance" Dan Froomkin, don't you see that the very truth itself that Froomkin analyzes - IS the truth, and can never be "balanced"?

The truth is the truth. Bush's ratings are in the basement. The war is a quagmire rivaling Vietnam and was based on lies.

These are T R U T H S.

You can hire all the fundies in the world; their blatherings won't change reality. I urge the Post to face reality for a change.

" ... we believe this event, among other things, testifies to the positive and powerful role that the Internet can play in the the practice of journalism."

Well, yeah, if you mean doing your vetting (e.g. your JOB for you). Pathetic. Management has now passed the fail-safe point and appears to be committed to self-destruction. I wonder what it feels like to be laughed to death.

Perhaps the Post should now revisit the idea of
hiring an ombudsman to fill the post of ombudsman,
and some journalists to work as journalists.
God I sound so 20th century!

The larger problem has to do with the newspaper industry's defensive reaction to conservative claims of liberal bias. This hire was made less to incorporate diverse opinions into the Washington Post than to appease conservatives critical of the paper.

Only when mass media outlets stop worrying about what Karl Rove thinks of them will they begin to regain their integrity.

"journalistic integrity at the washington post".
There's a contradiction in terms.

Mr. Brady:

It is just not possible to look at the
Domenech issue and not blame you
for this terrible, shameful and costly
mistake. What about your resignation?
Do you really believe you have
any credibility left?

Does anyone at the Washington Post regret not having investigated Domenech's credibility before this fiasco?

(Washington DC) Washington Post.com executive editor, James Brady, recently defended his decision to remain silent in response to criticism about Washington Post writer Ben Domenech.

"Let's just say that a lot of those commenter where shrill," stated Mr. Brady. "Liberals flooded the site and it was pretty ugly."

"Look," Mr. Brady continued, "I didn't put comments on my, I mean the Post's website so I'd have to talk with a bunch of shrill liberal losers. I didn't get into online publishing so I'd have to explain myself."

"It was pretty embarrassing," stated an Washington Post employee who wished to remain anonymous because he worked with Mr. Brady. "By not facing the comments, Mr. Brady made all of us look like cowards."

The Washington Post has recently come under fire for the hiring of 24-year old Domenech, who had no professional journalism experience. He did write for his university newspaper but is facing allegations that many of the articles he wrote for it were plagiarized from other sources.

Mr. Brady refused to answer when asked about the allegations of Mr. Domenech's plagiarism.

Washington Post publisher Caroline Little was unavailable for comment.

Ha ha ha ha.... So you were "unaware of any allegations" of plagiarism, eh? Phila beat me to it, but I second the motion that you hook up with some of the folks over on the print side and ask them about a little thing called research. In fact, looking at the sheer scale of young Ben's transgressions and weighing it against his departure from W&M, one can't help but wonder whether some of his old perfessers might have hinted against hiring him, had you bothered to actually call any of them.

Anyway thanks. It has certainly been a couple of days of laugh-out-loud funny.

I suppose we can trust WaPo to be sure they hire a racist who writes in his/her own words the next time.

Well, I appreciate that the executives at washingtonpost.com did the right thing and had a serious talk with Mr. Domenech. Kudos to Mr. Brady.
As for 'St. Augustine', I hope that this lesson won't hurt him to much. I'm sure he'll have a comeback, maybe at Foxnews or the Washington Times?
For us, the readers, the most important issue right now is that the Post still can be trusted to live up to his reputation. But let's hope that a more careful vetting process will avoid mishaps like this one in the future.

Glad to see you acknowledge the power of the Internet. Maybe the next time you get swarmed by the Inetrent blogging community about something you publish, you'll take it more seriously than you did with Deborah Howell.

But I disagree that plagiarism is the worst offence a journalist can commit. It's only the second worst.

The worst offence is simply "making stuff up" and passing it off as reporting - as you and Deborah did. That's why the bloggers burned you so badly. You were just making stuff up. Then you finally acknowledged a "poor choice of wording," but turned around and made even more stuff up!

America is on the brink. Its president is out of control, and blatantly ignoring the constitution and the laws of the land, improsing and torturing "suspects", and calling the majority of Americans unpatriotic because we disagree with him. Congress won't act. Instead, they want to retroactively legalize the president's crimes. To make a long story short: in our preesent circumstances America can ill afford to have so-called journalists who just "make stuff up."

99% of American political bloggers are guilty of Plagiarism.

Let any blogger who has not Plagiarized cast the first stone.

See what happens when you're placed under the laser-like focus of the blogosphere's microscope?

The truth has no place to hide.

If nothing else comes of this, I hope everyone has at least learned how to spell 'plagiarism'. I'm sure it's a word Domenech will remember, and even if he doesn't, I'm sure he can find another writer who does to copy from.

I will be moving to DC this summer. This whole episode simply proves to me how far the Washington Post has fallen in credibility and reputation. I was looking forward to getting not one, but two subscriptions to the Post (one for home and one for our small business). However, I will not be subscribing at all now. Time for the Post, and all major media, to wake up--your readers want the truth and facts, not all this partisan crud. Keep kowtowing to the far right and your paper will end up a cheap tabloid rag read by no one with an IQ over 75.

Conservatives who plagiarize and violent journalistic integrity?

Nah. Couldn't happen.

Especially not when the Conservative writer in question has the endorsement of – and carried the editorial water for – Ram Ponnuru and Michelle Malkin.

Never!

Not when the Conservative scribe in question has the backing, and shares the same employment skills, as Lucianne Goldberg's son and J.P. Normanson.

No sir!

Not when the Conservative author hails from such fine New Hampshire stock.

Just can't be true!

Why plagiarism and making things up, those are the inherent weaknesses of the Jayson Blair-Rick Bragg crowd.

A Conservative! Why, never!

Before you get about to replacing Ben Domenech with another right-wing blogger, you should agree to balance him out with a left-wing blogger.

"My Name Is" wrote: "Hey Ben Truly: Walk through this firestorm, check yourself, talk to someone, apologize, and shoot yourself. Here's an honest wish for good things for you and your family."

This is just gratuitous - even in jest it is a sick thing to write. Does he deserve to be fired? yes. Does he deserve to be shamed? Yes. Does the post need to be held responsible for it shoddy hiring practices? Absolutely. But to enjoin someone to commit suicide is twisted. Seek help immediately.

"We appreciate the speed and thoroughness with which our readers and media outlets surfaced these allegations..."

So, you appreciate...journalism? Done by others?

Jim Brady should go next.

I see no other way for the Washington Post organization to save just a thread of face over this than for Executive Editor Jim Brady to not only resign but to resign with a full and genuine apology for his incompetence. His incompetence was and stil is fully evident by his having allowed this to happen. This episode was not by far the first sign of gross incompetence shown by Mr. Brady, this should be the final straw. It's has been a very large straw, truly a backbreaker.

Personally, I hope that they replace this guy with a conservative.

Mr. Brady,

Just as Howell Raines stepped down as a result of the Jason Blair scandal, so should you take responsibility for this shameful affair and follow Domenech out the door.

You have brought disgrace to the Washington Post: first in your disingenuous and defensive response to the Deborah Howell/Abramoff fiasco, then in carelessly hiring this clearly unqualified partisan hack out of some still unexplained need to provide a voice to "Red America" and/or to counterbalance the experienced journalism of Dan Froomkin.

Do the right thing, not the Rightwing thing this time, and resign.

I used to be a regular Post reader, it was the very model of what a paper should be. Dig for the facts, print the truth & damn the consequences. But it became obvious during the 90s that that was no longer the driving force of the paper. Their treatment on the Clinton admin & the right's - almost always silly - attempts at smearing them. It seemed to get even worse after their complete take over of the Federal govt.

The Post is now mostly a tool of the right (unwittingly I hope) as they treat any opinion as valid & fact are fungible. The Post should note however that has not stopped the right from attacking them. There will be no peace from the right until the Post ignores any 'inconvienient' facts and hews to the right's fantacy world. So you might just as well give up trying to appease them, just reprint the DC Times under your banner that might make them lay off a little.

In the meantime sir I am still waiting for your apology and an explination.

We are all plagiarists now.

Any résumé listing "Bush Administration" needs to be dumped onto the "Unqualified" pile. Bush sought to hire those who could prove that government doesn't work. He filled the federal govenment with Michael Browns.

I'll bet Executive Editor Brady won't get it. He's probably already returning K-Street Project messages on who should replace his boy Domenech. Plus he wants so badly to stick it to his critics, WaPo's reputation be damned.

At least that's how it appears out here, outside the beltway, in real America.

I appreciate the attention, by the way." -- Ben Domenech

Always happy to help.

Next time you should be a little more careful with your hires. And if you want to hire explicit partisans, there should be one for each side.

You don't need to balance reporters reporting facts with conservatives venting their ire.

HOORAY!

>

Sad to say, but the National Enquirer is more accurate and probing than today's WaPo and most other major newspapers.

Hey Brady, did a neo-con in the white house write that for you?

Look, EVERYTHING neo-con has been exposed as garbage. Isn't one of them smart enough to try some REAL reform and maybe look like a Hero and a Maverick. It's not like the ocean of filth that is the GOP is just going to evaporate and people will forget it. The neo-con movement is just about dead and it is just BEGINNING to be exposed for the lie factory it is. What is going to happen when it is totally naked?!

Well thank goodness you at least find plagarism a firing-offense. Too bad you didn't find being an obnoxious idiot a non-hiring offense.

You'll be resigning when?

the wapoonline hires this hack to "balance" the alleged liberal leanings of froomkim...

why is anyone who questions the falsehoods, spinning, and incompetencies of the administration a "liberal"?

they used to be called journalists.

I think the WaPo.com is doing the right thing - as well as Mr. Domenech.

And to those of you calling for Mr. Brady's resignation or ridiculing the mistake - I hope the same thing happens to you when you make a mistake at work - hundreds of people laughing at you.

Should be fun...for me to watch.

If Mr. Brady lacks the necessary cojones to resign for being such a stupid fool, then he should be fired. To have hired such a total nitwit in the first place was inexcusable, but not to have checked his bona fides before posting his bigoted vomitus is truly beyond the pale.
Apparently, Mr. Brady thinks that the closer WaPo is to the Moonie Times as a mouthpiece for the far right wingnuts, the better it will be as a paper. Right now, WaPo isn't fit to use as fishwrap. And if Brady is so keen on getting a rightwing hack to blog, all he has to do is use Howie the Putz, who already soils the pages of the Post with his infantile whining.
If Brady could get his head out of his own backside for a few minutes, he might be able to see that he is totally clueless about blogging, and probably about journalism as a whole. Whether he is capable of learning anything is another issue. His recent performance makes me doubt that he could find his butt with both hands, a flashlight, a search warrant and two people to help him. That must be why he hired Domenech---they have so much in common!

at least the post deals with its problems faster than the GOP and Bush people do. Maybe copycat can teach his pals something now.....

Here is a novel idea: Instead of Mr. Brady resigning, how about he atones for his sins by devoting his life, and mission of the Washington Post Online, to the TRUTH, no matter where it takes the paper, and who is brings down with it? Enough of this left-spin, right-spin balancing-act garbage! Report the facts and quit worrying about what Karl Rove might think...

No need for the Right WingNuts to attack the credibility of WaPo, you've done it to yourselves so efficiently that you don't have any left.

why don't you hire Byron York? He's more or less the only movement conservative with actual journalism credentials.

Personally, my first reaction to the addition of a right-wing blog was "say, that's a good idea". There's no denying the Post's liberal bias(just look at which stories get pushed to the top of the webpage... I never thought things like "President's poll numbers at record low" was front-page news, but that's just me.) and I don't think the Post would suffer from publishing a few more authors from the right side of the line. Just... stay away from the O'Reillys. I KNOW there are conservatives out there with worthwhile things to say. Let's publish them instead of the hacks, please?

Hiring Jane Hamsher would be the smartest think you ever did. Not only would you get professional quality stuff, you would get her out of your grill. And I think the suggestion of hiring J.C. Christian, Patriot is a good one because he's heterosexual and not French.

How in God's name did you get caught with your pants around your ankles so badly? Within hours a community of amateurs outed Domenech as a racist and a homophobe; within a day, they found out he was a plagiarist and a fabricator as well. Wasn't this YOUR job? Aren't YOU the journalists?

People keep saying that blogs will take over the job of newspapers, as the press proves itself more and more stupefyingly incompetent. You've just taken one large step closer to making that prediction come true. Congratulations, idiots.

Thank you Washington Post for exposing the right wing for what it really stands for. This blogger regularly and plainly wrote about his racist, hateful views for