As I’m sure many people did, I spent this weekend watching in utter dismay as a certain Rolling Stone piece on sexual assault at the University of Virginia, written by Sabrina Rubin Erdely, 180’d from a powerful, viral success to a case of questionable reporting, and Rolling Stone, in an apology, initially seemed to put the blame on Erdaly’s source, the victim of an alleged assault (they’ve since amended it). I considered writing about this, but I didn’t think I had anything useful to add to the discussion. Why? Because I am a member of the media, and what went wrong was the fault of members of the media who reported the story, ignored the source’s request to be left out of the ensuing article, failed to corroborate the details of the source’s story, and blamed the source when factual holes in the article—the result of incomplete reporting—were sussed out. A lot has been made of the controversy since it came to light—the requisite thinkpieces are out there. But the students at UVA are, of course, the ones who have the most to lose due to this error in reporting. So instead of reading any of the many thinkpieces available, or trying to write my own, I found this response, written by a UVA student, who was the source’s roommate when the alleged assault occurred. If you read one article about the retraction, it should be this one:
Sometime that year I remember her letting it slip to me that she had had a terrible experience at a party. I remember her telling me that multiple men had assaulted her at this party. She didn’t say anything more. It seemed that was all she’d allow herself to say. I wish I had done something sooner. I wish I had known how to help. But I applaud Jackie for telling her story, now two years later. It was a story that needed to be told.
However, the articles released in the past few days have been troubling to me, and the responses to them even more so. While I cannot say what happened that night, and I cannot prove the validity of every tiny aspect of her story to you, I can tell you that this story is not a hoax, a lie or a scheme. Something terrible happened to Jackie at the hands of several men who have yet to receive any repercussions.
It continues:
There is fear among us, and there is pain after these past few weeks of turmoil. But there is also hope, which has been manifested in a multitude of protests, speeches, and groups formed. There is a support growing among students and faculty that has never been seen before. The number of conversations occurring about rape, rights, consent and justice is astounding and inspiring, but talking only goes so far.
UPDATE: The website of the Daily Cavalier, the student newspaper at UVA, appears to be down right now. ABC reprinted the full text of the letter—with permission—here.
I dunno, from what I’ve read there still remain some serious inconsistencies in the story.