http://www.bakersfield.com/state_wire/story/5511963p-5498128c.html
Sacramento Bee columnist quits amid inquiry
The Associated Press
Posted: Thursday May 12th, 2005, 9:35 AM
Last Updated: Thursday May 12th, 2005, 9:35 AM
SACRAMENTO (AP) - A Sacramento Bee columnist resigned in the midst of the newspaper's investigation into whether she fabricated some of the people she mentioned in several recent columns, the newspaper said in Thursday editions.
Diana Griego Erwin, who won a Pulitzer Prize and George Polk award while working at the Denver Post in the 1980s, came to The Bee 12 years ago.
"During our inquiry we found we could not authenticate the existence of several people even though they were identified by name, age and sometimes by the neighborhoods in which they were reported to have lived," Executive Editor Rick Rodriguez wrote in the space usually reserved for Griego Erwin's three-day-a-week column. "When asked to provide confirmation ... she was unable to do so to our satisfaction."
Griego Erwin maintained her innocence even while resigning for personal reasons, Rodriguez said. She said in a statement that, "I did nothing wrong, but could not fully prove that to The Bee."
In addition to her awards while at the Denver Post, she won the American Society of Newspaper Editors award for best column writing in 1990 while at the Orange County Register along with other awards at The Bee.
Rodriguez noted her resignation "comes at a time when the news industry has been hit with a series of high-profile ethical lapses in print and broadcast. And this kind of unfortunate story can't help but cut into our credibility."
He said readers are rightly demanding more accountability and the paper is determined to maintain their trust.
He said more cases are becoming known in part because the authenticity of sources is easier to verify. In Griego Erwin's case, he said a handful of individuals named in recent columns couldn't be confirmed, after an inquiry into a single column began more than two weeks ago.
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On the Net:
The Sacramento Bee: www.sacbee.com
But they haven't proved anything! She quit for personal reasons. Denies she did wrong, and says they won't find any evidence that she did wrong. Last time I heard "they won't find any evidence of wrong," it was Hillary, on Today show, saying Monica was lying about Bill. This is also a standard retort of captured criminals on TV -- "You can't prove that!"