
Hundreds of journalists from the Wall Street Journal signed a letter this week criticizing the paper’s opinion section for spreading misinformation.
The stunning rebuke, signed by 280 staffers of the Journal and sent to the paper’s new publisher, calls for better fact-checking, more transparency, and a clearer divide between news and opinion divisions, according to a draft of the letter obtained by Mediaite.
“Opinion’s lack of fact-checking and transparency, and its apparent disregard for evidence, undermine our readers’ trust and our ability to gain credibility with sources,” the letter to publisher Almar Latour says. “Many readers already cannot tell the difference between reporting and Opinion. And from those who know of the divide, reporters nonetheless face questions about the Journal’s accuracy and fairness because of errors published in opinion.
One of the pieces cited by the letter is an op-ed from Vice President Mike Pence, published June 16, that declared there would be no “second wave” of coronavirus. Since, the virus has rapidly spread throughout the United States.