Should The Times Be a Truth Vigilante?

It boggles my mind that the New York Times public editor Arthur Brisbane wrote on Jan 12th, Should The Times Be a Truth Vigilante? "I’m looking for reader input on whether and when New York Times news reporters should challenge ‘facts’ that are asserted by newsmakers they write about."

After quoting a received letter he wrote "This message was typical of mail from some readers who, fed up with the distortions and evasions that are common in public life, look to The Times to set the record straight. They worry less about reporters imposing their judgment on what is false and what is true."

Now I know there are times where details are murky, but there have been so many times in this campaign where candidates have said things that are demonstratively false. It really shouldn't be difficult to print the quote and then cite a fact from a neutral source. E.g., Obama has raised taxes, no he hasn't, the tax rates have changed as follows...

Morons.

David Atkins has more, The New York Times wonders aloud if it should care about the truth. "That the question is being asked after all these years is, I suppose, a good sign. That it had to be asked demonstrates everything that has gone wrong with modern journalism."

Kevin Drum said Let's Provide the New York Times With a List of Our Top 10 Lies. "And yet, if you insist on real-time fact-checking being done in news stories, then you have to do exactly what John suggests. Every news organization needs some kind of "fact manual" that provides the agreed-on facts for every conceivable assertion. The copy desk then has to ensure that these stylized facts are included in any story in which a public figure says something different. Question: Do you really want this? Does anyone want this? A few weeks ago PolitiFact declared that "Republicans want to end Medicare" was their Lie of the Year. If the Times adopted this position, it means that every time a Democrat said this the Times would explain that it's not really true. Are we all up for that? Are we really as willing to allow the Times to be the supreme arbiter of truth as we think?" I'm game.