Rolling Stone Admits To Misplacing Trust In Alleged UVA Rape Victim, Issues Apology

Dillon Cheverere11 years ago

On November 19, Rolling Stone published a story recounting an alleged rape that took place inside University of Virginia’s Phi Kappa Psi house in 2012. The article, A Rape on Campus: A Brutal Assault and Struggle for Justice at UVA, detailed the entire ordeal leading up to, and during, the alleged 7-on-1 sexual assault, as recounted by the alleged victim, “Jackie.” The article also throws dirt on the fraternity and the university with the accusation that they covered up the horrific incident, as well as similar cases of sexual assault in the past, to protect their reputation.

A day after the article was published, the Phi Psi house was trashed and graffitied by outraged members of the community. The story made headlines across major news publications, soiling the names of the Phi Psi chapter and the university.

Just yesterday, we reported that major media outlets were questioning the legitimacy of Rolling Stone’s article, pointing out that there were numerous discrepancies in Jackie’s account.

Today, in a formal apology by Managing Editor Will Dana, titled, “A Note to Our Readers,” Rolling Stone admits that the information they received from Jackie may have some inaccuracies. They are now saying the trust originally placed in Jackie was “misplaced.”

From Rolling Stone:

In the face of new information, there now appear to be discrepancies in Jackie’s account, and we have come to the conclusion that our trust in her was misplaced. We were trying to be sensitive to the unfair shame and humiliation many women feel after a sexual assault and now regret the decision to not contact the alleged assaulters to get their account. We are taking this seriously and apologize to anyone who was affected by the story.

To read their apology in its entirety, click HERE.

What a terrible, sad, unfortunate mess..

[via Rolling Stone]

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