Time for Brian Ross to Find a New Job

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Earlier this morning, ABC’s Brian Ross reported that some guy named Jim Holmes who belonged to the Colorado Tea Party might be the same James Holmes who murdered a dozen people in a theater in Aurora last night. “Now, we don’t know if this is the same Jim Holmes,” Ross said “but it’s Jim Holmes of Aurora, Colorado.”

Needless to say, it turned out that this wasn’t the guy. I don’t normally call for people’s heads for making a mistake, even a bad one, but this is really beyond the pale. What kind of reporter says something like this on national TV despite knowing full well that he has no idea if he’s pegging the right person? Is there really any good reason Ross should still be employed by ABC News by the close of business today?

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DONALD TRUMP & DEMOCRACY

Mother Jones was founded to do journalism differently. We stand for justice and democracy. We reject false equivalence. We go after stories others don’t. We’re a nonprofit newsroom, because the kind of truth-telling investigations we do doesn’t happen under corporate ownership.

And we need your support like never before, to fight back against the existential threats American democracy faces. Fundraising for nonprofit media is always a challenge, and we need all hands on deck right now. We have no cushion; we leave it all on the field.

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