PROFESSOR JACOBSON: DOING THE JOB THE ALLEGEDLY PROFESSIONAL MEDIA WON’T:

The latest wildfire spreading through the media and blogosphere is that armed neo-Nazis are patrolling Sanford, FL, in anticipation of trouble if George Zimmerman is not charged in the killing of Trayvon Martin. In what has become a prime example of media malpractice, none of the major publications spreading the rumors bothered to check with local law enforcement. I did, and the Sanford Police deny any indication of neo-Nazi patrols. . . .

For The Daily Beast, Huffington Post, Mediaite, and The Daily News to spread such thinly-sourced claims without verification at a time when racial tensions already are high is irresponsible in the extreme.

Remember when people were saying that if we left news reporting to the blogosphere we’d just get a bunch of unsubstantiated rumors and spin?