The media startup Mic has parted ways with its news director, Jared B. Keller, a day after he was accused of multiple instances of plagiarism.
Mic co-founder Jake Horowitz sent the following statement to TPM:
ared Keller is no longer employed at Mic. Plagiarism is unacceptable in any form and our editorial policies make that very clear. We appreciate Gawker bringing these issues to our attention, and as we continue our internal review, we’ll be transparently updating any story that violates our standards.
Mic takes responsibility for allowing this to happen. We’re going to use this as an opportunity to improve as an organization, and we’re already soliciting candid feedback from our editorial staff about what we can be doing better. We’re committed to making all of the changes necessary to ensure that Mic is consistently exceeding the high standards we have for ourselves.
On Thursday afternoon, Keller posted a message on Twitter apologizing.
I want to apologize to my colleagues, friends, family and every hard-working journalist out there. There’s no excuse for my sloppiness.
— Jared Keller (@jaredbkeller) February 12, 2015
This post has been updated.
Brendan James contributed reporting.
New media startup off to a bad startup.
Yawn.
“Sloppiness?” Seriously, that is what you call it? Dude, plagiarism on this level is not sloppiness.
Props to Mic for wasting no time admitting the plagiarism was real, for axing the perpetrator, and for acknowledging their own fault in not catching it. This is the only kind of acceptable corporate apology – no euphemisms, no mealy-mouthed evasions. Just “He was wrong, he is gone, and we better watch out for this in the future.” As well as a grateful nod to Gawker for rooting out the problem. Good for you, Mic.
While everyone else seems to be dislocating their elbows slapping their own backs over this thing, I have to question what sort of editorial structure let something like this go on so long and so much.
Where were the editors and the copy checkers, where were the people in composition, and most of all where were the other reporters and journalists that worked just feet away in the very same offices?
Did no one read what this man was doing?
Nobody?
The people in charge of “Mic” need to be the next ones let go.
Yes that’s right. They ought to be FIRED just like this guy was.
“Parting” is something you do with hair.
When so many people SCREW UP like this, Continually, Keller should NOT be the ONLY one clearing out his (cyber) desk.
We’re talking basic, almost “Middle school” journalism here. Proofreading would have caught most of this, for corn sake.
It just goes to prove that in the age of the “startup” you can have (and burn thru) carloads of money.
The really disturbing thing about this story is that NOBODY at “MIC” spent an extra dime or two on someone with enough diligence and basic “it’s my job” type integrity to ride herd over it all.
The “Cyber” dimension of all this makes not a wit of difference.
Each one of these sites ought to have and enforce exactly the same standards as a small town print newspaper. The fact is that all this money and computer assisted ego has helped breed a sloppiness which no one wants to confront, let alone clean up.
What we have here is the entire “cyber news” world sliding slowly toward the standards pf “Faux News” and the headline for this story is that nobody gave a good Gawd damn. Except of course when it makes a sensational “story” for someone else.That’s one hell of a lousy epitaph for the age where what was left of the Forth Estate met the computer.
Four lousy words: Nobody gave a damn.
Well, WTF? Who cares? Mike Barnicle found his happy home on Morning Joke, so I’m sure there’ll be a place for him there, too. And Phil Griffin won’t be apologizing for it, either.