While reviewing the code of ethics for a local newspaper, I began to think about plagiarism and how it relates to blogs, the most informal of news mediums (though some would say "the least accountable"). While a newspaper would avoid taking information from any source without double-checking accuracy, most blogs tend to pass along what they've heard, post a link to where it came from, and leave it to the reader to decipher the truth of the situation. Many bloggers view it as their role to empower the reader by giving him the necessary tools (read: the right links) to make his own judgement, whilst offering a generous dose of personal opinion, which is usually accepted without much fuss. And if anyone wants to fuss, they leave a comment. This is all acceptable and normal in the context of many blogs. The mainstream news media, furthermore, considers it the worst of sins (just look what they did to Ben Domenech) to take any information and present it as your own (even if you rearrange it) without crediting the source. Now, this is a great rule to follow and I do think journalists should be held to it, although I believe we are a bit hypocritical as a society to elevate plagiarism to a status of extreme evil while accepting with a wink, wink, other forms of lying and unfaithfulness, such as divorce and adultery. But I've always tried on this blog to avoid plagiarism and identify my sources, and I'm committed to doing so in the future. However, think about this: The worst kind of plagiarism for a newspaper is to plagiarize a peer, another paper (whether print or online is irrelevant). A paper would never use a story from a fellow paper, reword it, and publish it as if they had obtained the information and interviews themselves. Not unless they clearly attribute the original source. If a paper obtains info from a wire service, they credit the source. If a paper obtains a press release, they double-check the information themselves (when possible) and attempt to obtain first-hand quotes and information, or they attribute the press release directly. That's because the nature of a newspaper is to obtain information from the most primary sources available, check it, then pass it along to the public as "certified" truth.