Romenesko

Cleveland Plain Dealer
Plain Dealer ombud Ted Diadiun says the sex-related allegations against Ohio gubernatorial candidate Ted Strickland were checked by the paper's reporters and found to be "unsupported, meaningless or distorted." Yet, the Plain Dealer "shined a light" on some of the charges in a story last week. Why? "Because it would have been irresponsible, unfair to Strickland and unfair to our readers NOT to run it," says Diadiun. Editor Doug Clifton adds: "At some point, ignoring charges has the effect of buttressing them." More editor/ombud columns:
> At SacBee, an act of God still trumps Sacramento Kings (most days) (SB)
> House: Affidavit was disturbing to some, but still worth posting (FWS-T)
> Stories about election polls often controversial with readers (KC Star)
> Pynn's intrigued by references to "most observers" (Orlando Sentinel)
> Some N&O readers ask that critics keep opinions out of reviews (N&O)
> A few myths persist about newspaper editorial endorsements (FT-U)
> Times Union editor explains paper's successful suit against pols (ATU)