Mitch goes to the corner

Although they didn't say what it was, the Freep, did say that "Disciplinary action has been taken against five employees," including Mitch Albom for the fabricated column written about MSU's NCAA appearance. In a letter to readers, Editor / Publisher Carol Leigh Hutton said, "We took into account many factors, including the seriousness of the offense, the importance of our credibility, the history of those involved and Albom's 20 stellar years at the Free Press.... We now look forward to that work continuing in the Free Press."

I was at a baseball game with a group of journalists this weekend and when the talk turned to Mitch, some saying that he got off easy because he's a star. Then the publisher, a veteran of more than 30 years in the biz, asked, "How many good journalists have had careers ruined because newspapers over-reacted?"

We contemplated this one, finally admitting that at some point during our work world adventures, each of us had probably stretched the edge of the envelope at least once. A friend at another paper told me recently that a copy editor was summarily fired for an inadvertent infraction far less egregious than Mitch's foray into fiction.

The Regret the Error website tells the tale of an LA Times reporter who was fired this week for mistakes in a piece about a fraternity hazing incident. Reading The Time's more detailed account of what lead to the dismissal, it sounds like the right call. It sounds like we won't be privy to as much information about the Freep's investigation.

We do know that Carol Leigh Hutton is an exceptional leader and role model with a track record of both character and sensitivity, two traits we admire in the competitive world of 21st century journalism.

Should Mitch Albom be fired for his anticipatory story which painted a picture that never happened? Or should the Freep swat his knuckles with a ruler and send him back to his typewriter without supper? The right answer is probably somewhere in between the two.