This week, it came to my attention that a weekly financial advice column that has appeared in the Tribune for several years was being presented in a way that did not accurately disclose the content’s origination.
I became aware of the situation after receiving a telephone message Tuesday morning from Joe Strupp, senior editor with Editor and Publisher, a national publication that covers media issues.
When I contacted Strupp, he explained to me that some questions had arisen about a column that appeared in a Huntsville, Texas, newspaper on June 25, which was identical to a column we published June 19 from Rebecca Warren, a certified financial planner in Mesa. The suggestion, at first, seemed to be that the Huntsville writer may have plagiarized from Warren.
I offered a limited comment saying it was the first I’d heard of the situation but that I would look into it from our end. As the day progressed, more became known. The column, as it turns out, was appearing in several places across the country under different writer names.
A closer look, as reported by E&P, revealed the column apparently originated with the Financial Planners Association, a national group whose members are made up of certified planners, including Warren.
Christine Richardson, a spokeswoman for the FPA, based in Denver, was aware of the issue by Tuesday afternoon when I spoke with her, as other media had been looking into the matter. She confirmed the FPA produces the columns for its members, and offers guidelines for use on member web sites, in newsletters or in local papers.
The FPA suggests that, if the columns are reproduced largely intact, information be added at the end of the article – known as a “tagline’’ – that specifies the column is produced by the FPA and being “provided’’ by a local member, who can then be identified. If the member changes the columns substantially, but retains some key information, the FPA allows them to take credit.
I spoke with Warren Wednesday morning about the situation. She explained the columns we have published originate with the FPA. Warren said that often, she would make some changes, such as deleting parts of the column to meet our space requirements, or some phrasing changes.
My own review of several recent columns we have published, compared to the original FPA versions, showed that, even when cuts were made, most of the published material was reprinted verbatim as it was provided by FPA.
Unfortunately, we at the Tribune were not aware of the FPA’s role in producing the columns. The columns were not submitted by Warren with the explanation of the source suggested by the FPA. As a result, the columns were incorrectly presented as Warren’s original work and did not attribute the source of the information correctly.
I trust that much of the information provided each week was helpful to many readers. But that does not trump the importance of properly crediting the source of the materials that the Tribune publishes in the paper and online.
Richardson said the FPA is reviewing its guidelines for the columns’ use to see if changes need to be made to clear up any confusion for members. The FPA did not suggest that plagiarism occurred.
After speaking with Warren, I believe there may well have been a misunderstanding about proper attribution standards more than any deliberate intent to mislead Tribune editors or readers. As a result of this situation, we are reviewing out own guidelines for publishing material from outside contributors.
I apologize to our readers for any confusion this may have caused and assure you that we are committed to providing accurate information in print and online, which includes proper crediting and attribution of sources. When we err, we stand ready to make corrections promptly.
Going forward, we will no longer run the FPA columns Warren provides. She will continue to make them available on her web site, WarrenFinancialServices.com.
Chris Coppola is editor of the Tribune Newspapers and eastvalleytribune.com. He can be reached at ccoppola@evtrib.com. Follow his newsroom updates on Twitter: EVTribEditor.)
Well handled, in a timely and professional manner. Unfortunately, this type of situation happens all too often…examples include “articles” distributed by the Pentagon providing “information” on miilitary matters….often published without proper attribution