New York magazine says it’s sorry for the story that claimed a high school senior was rumored to be a multi-millionaire:
We were duped. Our fact-checking process was obviously inadequate; we take full responsibility and we should have known better. New York apologizes to our readers.
The apology comes after stories in The Washington Post, The New York Times and The New York Observer debunking the claim.
The original story, which has since been corrected, quoted Mohammed Islam, a senior at Stuyvesant High School in New York, saying he was valued in the “high eight figures.” The story was picked up by The New York Post before The New York Observer ran a story quoting Islam admitting his fortune did not exist.
The author of the story, Jessica Pressler, said Islam provided bank statements demonstrating his worth to New York fact checkers. Islam told The Observer he led her to believe “I had made even more than $72 million” on simulated trades.
The New York Post has since corrected its story:
Mohammed Islam has since admitted he lied to New York Magazine and did not make any money on the stock market, an Observer interview reveals.
