Rolling Stone casts doubts on its story of Virginia campus rape

Rolling Stone magazine has acknowledged it now had reservations about an article it published that made detailed allegations of a gang rape at a University of Virginia fraternity.

The magazine said that its trust in the sole source for the article, Jackie, the woman making the allegations, was misplaced.

The magazine's managing editor, Will Dana, wrote that there appeared to be "discrepancies" in the description of the brutal gang rape in the article, A Rape on Campus, by Sabrina Rubin Erdely.

In the face of new information, Dana wrote, “we have come to the conclusion that our trust in her was misplaced,” referring to Jackie, the source of the article.

The fraternity, Phi Kappa Psi, released a statement in which it denied the assault took place. “Our initial doubts as to the accuracy of the article have only been strengthened as alumni and undergraduate members have delved deeper,” the statement said.

In an interview, Dana said Rolling Stone first realised something might be wrong when Jackie texted Erdely to tell her the Washington Post had raised questions about the article, which was published on November 19th.

Rolling Stone did not identify specific errors beyond those that had been made public, but Dana said he now feels that the magazine may have done Jackie a disservice in agreeing to her request that it not seek to corroborate her story about the rape that was said to have occurred on September 28th, 2012.

“I don’t know what happened that night,” Dana said. “I don’t know who is telling the truth and who is not.”

There should never be, he added, “a story in Rolling Stone where I feel that way”.

When he first read the article, Dana said, “I thought, ‘Are you sure’? We talked about it a lot, and between the editors here, the fact-checkers and Sabrina, we thought that the account was credible.”

Rolling Stone’s lawyers had no difficulties with the article, as long as those accused were not identified, he said.

The fraternity said the chapter had no event scheduled on the weekend in question. While the article said the initiator of the assault was a fraternity member who worked as a lifeguard at a university aquatic center, Phi Kappa Psi said its review indicated that no member of the fraternity worked there during the time in question.

Erdely did not return messages seeking comment.

In an interview this week, after questions were raised about the article, she stood by her reporting. “I am convinced that it could not have been done any other way, or any better,” she said, and suggested that the debate about the veracity of the article stood only to divert attention from the real scandal - a crime that had not been sufficiently investigated.

The report of the discrepancies first appeared on the Post’s website. The Rolling Stone article drew widespread notice and became part of a national debate over the problem of sexual assault on college campuses. Phi Kappa Psi suspended its operations. University officials were accused of mishandling and concealing the sexual assaults for years.

At a meeting last week in Charlottesville, members of the university's board said they were devastated by the report and gave no indication that its veracity was in question. George Keith Martin, the university rector, began the meeting by saying, "I would like to say to Jackie and her family that I'm sorry." Others lamented her reported treatment at the hands of the university, and the police chief called for witnesses to come forward.

At the meeting, university officials agreed to come up with recommendations on how to address the problem of sexual assaults on campus. While acknowledging news of the discrepancies, the Virginia president, Teresa A. Sullivan, said the university remained “more focused than ever” on the issue of sexual violence on campus. “We will continue to take a hard look at our practices, policies and procedures,” she said.

Gary Pleasants, a spokesman for the Charlottesville Police Department, said the latest report did not change the focus of its work. "Our purpose is to find the truth in any matter and that's what we are looking for here," he said. The fraternity said it would also continue to assist investigators.

New York Times