Although it is sad to know that Rove has escaped indictment by Fitz, I think that this shows us a valuable (and timely, given the Plame panel at YKos) lesson here at DailyKos about accuracy in
our reporting.
It is no secret that DKos has a target on its back, even moreso now that our profile has been raised higher after this past weekend. And it is no secret that one of the things that make this a great community is the fact that we take pride in our accuracy and sourcing. This is one of the biggest differentiators between us, most of our right-wing counterpart communities, as well as some of the other left-leaning communities.
Because of this, it is IMPERATIVE that we don't get caught in the trap of wanting to be first to report something here or see our names on the recommended list, only to ultimately have egg on our face because of sloppiness or inaccuracies in OUR reporting.
More below:
I was lucky enough to ask a question of the Plame panel regarding Leopold's reporting that Rove has already been indicted, the shifting 24 hour window, the excitement here and many many many diaries on this matter, and ultimately the silence after a few days has passed.
The answers that I got were very telling. After Murray Waas jokingly pointed out the follow up diary indicating that Ronald McDonald was Leopold's source, emptywheel basically said that if the information is coming from someone other than Murray Waas, then to be skeptical. I was able to follow up with Jane Hamsher afterwards, and while thanking her for their response and telling her how kick ass of a job they all did on the panel, she thanked me for asking the question, and that some on the panel were expecting a question of that nature.
Not to bash Leopold too much, as we don't know if he was set up or if he will still reveal his sources but it has become evident that there are sources that we here at DKos should be skeptical of. Funny enough and on a similar note, I was talking to mem from Somerville and Sharoney over the weekend when we were approached by either a troll, a "spy" or just an idiot who was singing the praises of Wayne Madsen and his website. Stupid me tried to tell him that Madsen isn't the most credible of sources and ended up hearing a diatribe from this gentleman for 10 minutes before he walked away to chew someone else's ear off.
We really need to be careful of what we assert here, and who we are citing. This can't be stressed enough. If our credibility goes (and even the smallest things get blown up and used as examples of how the "Kos Kidz" are loony or not to be taken seriously), then we lose our biggest weapon - the truth.
A few weekends ago, there was a diary that shot to the top of the recommended list which basically accused Bush of lying about when he found out about the Haditha massacre. While Bush lies about many things, it turned out that the diarist misread the quotes and the conclusion was wrong. Now, the conclusion was challenged by many in the community, but the diary was not deleted (and I am not about to get into a debate as to whether I thought it should or should not have) nor was it changed (other than the title). Ultimately, the diary, with its awkward title, stayed on the recommended list for a number of hours after the inaccuracies were pointed out.
I said it above, and I will say it again: Being accurate is the most important thing here. More important than being first. More important than seeing your name on the recommended list. Besides, if your name is associated with inaccurate information, then it is LESS likely that your subsequent diaries will be given much credence.
This community is "big time". We proved it again this past weekend. But with that comes tremendous responsibility as well. Responsibility to make sure that we are accurate. Responsibility to make sure that our sources are credible. That our conclusions are well founded. Of course, that is not to say that conclusions can't be challenged - but they shouldn't be based on factually incorrect information.
We have a great thing going here. Let's not fuck it up.