The Journal keeps itself accountable — again

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In The Journal’s last issue, the editors apologized for the multiple errors in the story “Make the most of a student ID.” The Journal then started the fact-checking process for past stories written by the same reporter, Deven Teabeau. During this process and in a conversation with Teabeau, The Journal discovered more occasions of fabrication and errors. In “Freshman displays taste for style and burgers,” Teabeau fabricated the quotes of Caleb Bender.

In “Underneath it all: Missouri History Museum looks at women’s undergarments,” Teabeau fabricated quotes and used direct information from several sources which she did not attribute in the story. All stories by this writer have been removed from The Journal’s website, websterjournal.com. Teabeau was suspended from The Journal.

As the editor-in-chief of The Journal, I feel I am ultimately responsible for these mistakes, and I apologize for them. I also apologize to everyone affected by these stories. In The Journal’s previous issue, it published “Letter from the Editors: The Journal keeps itself accountable,” in which the editors made a promise to improve The Journal’s editing and fact-checking processes in an effort to make sure similar mistakes do not happen in the future.

The editors and I are still focused on this commitment to our readers. The Journal has also increased its awareness with both writers and editors of the consequences of unethical journalistic practices. The Journal staff is moving forward and continuing to improve our processes, and I hope readers will move forward with us. —Brittany Ruess, Journal editor-in-chief websterjournal@gmail.com

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