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NC Paper: We Tried to Confirm Edwards Affair

Editor says coverage was spot on, given what reporters knew

By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff

Posted Aug 13, 2008 12:24 PM CDT
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(Newser) – There has been much hand-wringing over the mainstream media’s coverage—or lack thereof—of the John Edwards sex scandal, but the News & Observer of Raleigh thinks it got it right. In a blog post today, the executive editor explains that the paper took the Enquirer’s allegations seriously, sending reporters to try to confirm each report. What they couldn’t report, they didn’t run.

The N&O did post a piece online when Edwards first denied the story in October, but didn’t print it because the report apparently came from a single, anonymous source. “The Enquirer cannot be ignored. But neither can it be trusted,” the editor writes. Whenever the paper had evidence, it ran stories. “Questions remain about…Hunter’s baby,” he notes. “We’ll continue reporting.”

In this Dec. 27, 2006 photo provided by the National Enquirer, former Sen. John Edwards is shown with videographer Rielle Hunter in the 9th Ward of New Orleans, La.
In this Dec. 27, 2006 photo provided by the National Enquirer, former Sen. John Edwards is shown with videographer Rielle Hunter in the 9th Ward of New Orleans, La.   (AP Photo/The National Enquirer)
John Edwards gestures during a news conference Los Angeles.
John Edwards gestures during a news conference Los Angeles.   (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File)
A commuter reads a copy of the National Enquirer in New York's Penn Station Friday Aug. 8, 2008 headlining a story on John Edwards having an extramarital affair while his wife was battling cancer.
A commuter reads a copy of the National Enquirer in New York's Penn Station Friday Aug. 8, 2008 headlining a story on John Edwards having an extramarital affair while his wife was battling cancer.   (AP Photo/Ed Ou)
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media • John Edwards • newspaper • journalism • Raleigh • National Enquirer • Rielle Hunter

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