Egg on our face? You betcha!
The fact that a story about Palin attending an invite-only 50th anniversary gala of a Republican women’s group in Simi Valley grabbed so many headlines is a testament to the media’s unending obsession with the straight-talking lady from Wasilla, Alaska. It also turned out to be false.
We found out this week that Palin wasn’t coming to Simi after all (hand wiping egg from face). See related story on page 1.
According to Meghan Stapleton, spokesperson for Palin’s political action committee, the former Alaska governor “has other work and commitments to take care of at that time.”
She goes on to say that Palin never committed to attending the engagement and even requested that the Republican Women Federated take her name off the invitations weeks ago—a statement the group won’t go on the record to refute.
One way or another, the media and the hundreds of people who purchased $100 tickets to tomorrow night’s gala were misled. But who’s really to blame for the misreporting?
We had to ask ourselves: “Did we do our due diligence?” Or were we swept up in Palin-mania right along with the many other news outlets that reported the visit that was not to be.
As much as we attempted to use language that would suggest the event wasn’t a sure thing, we reported it nonetheless, without getting assurance from the source: Palin herself. We took the group’s word for it, and that was a mistake.
We’re sure the GOP group was not lying to us or to invitees; they were simply promoting their fundraiser with the aid of a major celebrity who hadn’t yet said 100 percent she’d be coming.
So is there a “teachable moment” in all of this?
For us, it’s to fight the urge get in line with the rest of the media and stick to the independent Acorn reporting that has won us thousands of readers. For the Republican Women Federated, it’s don’t count your chickens before they’ve hatched.
And for Palin, well, she learned that bailing out can really rub people the wrong way. Wonder if she’s heard that before?
