Writing in the American Journalism Review, Barb Palser references AOL Patch New Rochelle plagiarizing material from Talk of the Sound back in September. It is becoming clear that this incident is following AOL Patch around, turning up in every “overview” piece written about the hyper-local news venture. Last week, the incident turned up in an article at Online Journalism Review. This week it is the prestigious AJR.
Give Patch a Chance – Controversy swirls around AOL’s ambitious hyperlocal venture.
Pulser wrote:
Working conditions aren’t the only issue dogging Patch. There’ve also been documented incidents of plagiarism in which local Patch editors took content from other sites. In one case a New Rochelle, New York, Patch editor stole a mug shot compilation image from a local blogger and when caught, lied about it to her editors. In another case, a Venice, California, Patch editor stole an obituary from a local blog and ran it without attribution. Patch managers apologized for both incidents, emphasizing Patch’s commitment to journalism ethics.
