California Watch Director Stands Behind "Easy A" Article
Mark Katches, the Director of California Watch, the group that wrote the article about the athletic department’s easy A class list, has released a statement regarding the article. Fiat Lux bloggers have already raised concerns here and here. The Stanford Daily editor in chief, Zach Zimmerman, stands behind the publishing of the article. Also, people quoted in the article have raised serious concerns about the reporting process and possible violations of journalistic standards (read about some of these claims here and here).
Katches’ statement reads:
California Watch, and our parent organization the Center for Investigative Reporting, stands by the reporting of Stanford students who produced under our direction a story about a class list distributed to Stanford athletes – a list of classes that some student athletes were quoted describing as “easy.” These students are enrolled in an investigative reporting class at Stanford. Soon after they began asking Stanford administrators about the “courses of interest,” list, the university discontinued it.
It took a lot of courage for the students to produce this story, knowing that it was going to cause controversy within the Stanford community – a community they are very proud to be a part of.Some of the athletes and faculty quoted in the piece have contended in letters, e-mails and discussion boards that they were misquoted or misled by student journalists. We are reviewing these concerns. But we believe the journalism students acted professionally and responsibly in reporting a fair, balanced and accurate story.Mark KatchesEditorial DirectorCalifornia Watch510.809-3174