The Stealth Retraction
Is it just me, or is it disingenuous and weak to write a blog post containing some controversial or potentially offensive* claim (e.g., accusations of plagiarism) and then, as quick as the post appeared, remove any trace of it, without any retractions, apologies or explanations?
I find myself using my RSS reader less than before, so it’s not every day I check the feed of every blog I follow. Today, I discovered a blog post accusing a journalist of plagiarizing the blog in an article. When I clicked on the headline, it sent me straight to a 404, and there’s no trace of the article anywhere. I can only assume that it wasn’t plagiarism, or the author and the journalist worked it out somehow, or something of the sort. And then the blog author went and removed it with no apology or explanation. Stealth retractions are disingenuous and cowardly.
* Yes, I know any claim is potentially offensive, but some are more likely to be offensive than others (You’re plagiarizing me! is one of them).
