For three months, the media have demanded that Rep. Gary Condit be held accountable for withholding information from the public in the Chandra Levy case. Most recently, they've pummeled Condit's spokeswoman for allegedly spreading lies about Levy's sex life. Press Box has no interest in defending Condit's duplicitous, selfish, and cowardly behavior, but the press corps piranhas should be held to their own standards. Three weeks ago, they disseminated allegations that Condit had carried on an affair with an 18-year-old woman. That story now turns out to be false, but many of its purveyors are dragging their heels about admitting it.

The Washington Post broke the story in a front-page July 12 article headlined "Minister Says Daughter, at 18, Had an Affair With Condit." The article's lead paragraph reported, "FBI agents looking into the disappearance of Chandra Levy have approached and interviewed a Pentecostal minister who described an affair between his then-18-year-old daughter and Rep. Gary A. Condit, telling investigators that the congressman had warned her never to speak of the relationship." But on July 21, in a story headlined "Minister Recants Story About Condit," the Post reported that the minister "informed investigators this week that he had fabricated the story, a law enforcement source said today." On July 31, the Post added, "The FBI has concluded that a Pentecostal minister's account of an affair between his daughter and Rep. Gary A. Condit is untrue."

To its credit, the Post printed the July 21 article about the minister's retraction on its front page, at almost the same length as its original July 12 story. Other publications, pundits, and TV news programs haven't been as scrupulous. Here's a breakdown (based on searches using Dow Jones and Nexis) of who reported what about the minister's daughter, and what these members of the press have done--or not done--to correct the record since the story has been discredited.  

Newspapers and Magazines

AtlantaConstitution, July 12
Headline: 2 witnesses describe alleged Condit affairs
Length: 1,002 words
Retraction: Aug. 1, bottom of article headlined "Duplicate key may be new lead in Levy case," 26 words

DetroitNews, July 12
Headline: Preacher says daughter, Condit had an affair
Length: 246 words
Retraction: July 31, bottom of "National Briefs" (no headline), 108 words

HoustonChronicle, July 12
Headline: Minister describes 18-year-old's relationship with Condit
Length: 702 words
Retraction: None

MilwaukeeJournal Sentinel, July 12
Headline: Minister says daughter had affair with Condit
Length:184 words
Retraction: Aug. 1, bottom of article headlined "Levy investigation scaled back," 68 words

New York Daily News, July 12
Headline: NEW CONDIT AFFAIR BARED AS DOGS SEEK LEVY'S BODY

Daily News, July 21
Headline: CONDIT EVIDENCE DUMPING PROBED
Key text: Meanwhile, the Levy family puzzled over reports that Modesto preacher Otis Thomas had backed off his statement that his daughter had a bad breakup with Condit. ... Privately, some investigators said they thought Thomas was recanting to protect his daughter, who has refused to speak to the FBI for more than two months, allegedly out of fear.