Doubts spread around New Republic's "diarist"

The Drudge Report links an article published this morning in the New York Times about the controversy surrounding The New Republic's "Baghdad Diarist". Since the publication of the latest in a series of three articles written by "Scott Thomas" the anonymous author of the "diaries" the Times reports several readers including a spokesman for the base where the mystery "soldier" is purpoted to be based have raised questions about the authenticity of events recounted in these stories.

Now the proverbial chickens are coming home to roost for Franklin Foer, the editor of The New Republic who permitted these highly suspicious stories to be published without giving them more than a passing examination. Mr. Foer says of his interview with the author that, he had met the writer and that he knows with “near certainty” that he is, in fact, a soldier.

How's THAT for fact checking your unimpeachable sources! Mr. Foer is almost certain that the author really is a soldier! Sounds pretty solid to me. (Not)

Now that The Weekly Standard, the National Review, milbloggers and a spokesman for the base where these incidents supposedly occured are questioning the veracity of these outlandish tales now the editor of the The New Republic wants to test the author's truthfulness.

This is not the first time The New Republic has entered the realm of journalistic fantasyland. The New York Times reports in, the late 1990s, under different editors, the magazine fired an associate editor, Stephen Glass, for fabrications.

Good luck with that investigation Mr. Foer.