Problem
Fabricated quotations
Other Names:
MisstatementsAltered quotations
Distorted statements
Misrepresented citations
False citations
Nature:
In the act of transcribing words of an interview to writing, a journalist may accidentally or intentionally misquote the subject. A misquotation includes anything from the deletion or inversion of one word to the fabrication of entire statements. Whether such an error is the result of technical carelessness or purposeful distortion is sometimes difficult to determine. In either instance a faulty quotation is a misrepresentation of the subject's words, and is therefore potentially damaging to the subject's credibility. Misquotations are not limited to journalism and live interviews, as they may occur in such instances as an author's citation of historical excerpts and an orator's allusion to existing manuscripts. Misstatements of this nature are often difficult to detect, as some of the subjects are no longer living and able to defend themselves.
Incidence:
A $10 million libel lawsuit brought by a psychoanalyst against a journalist of The New Yorker hinges on 5 quotations appearing in her interview article which he claims are fabricated.
Narrower Problems:
Literary forgeryMisrepresentation of historical persons Related Problems:
DisinformationInfringement of privacyMisreading sacred documentsUnidentified news resourcesHistorical misrepresentationDistorted media presentations Aggravates:
False evidenceFalse accusationsDefamation of characterLack of press freedomLack of press freedomErosion of journalistic immunity Reduced By:
CensorshipStrategies:
Providing false evidenceDistorting statementsClarifying statementsFabricating quotationsBeing truthfulBeing fallaciousVerifying evidenceSwearing falselySwearing truthfullyReporting truthfullyGiving truthful statementsGiving false informationIncriminating falselyIncriminating in crimeUncovering police falsification of evidenceEnsuring credibility of police evidenceExposing false claims Subject(s):
Communication → CensorshipIndustry → Manufacture
Societal Problems → Distortion
Law → Tribunals, courts
Related UN Sustainable Development Goals:
Problem Type:
F: Fuzzy exceptional problems Date of last update
31.10.2017 – 17:10 CET