The Fast and the Erroneous

Abstract

This study analyzes how journalists reacted to Cable News Network’s (CNN) incorrect reporting, on June 28, 2012, that the U.S. Supreme Court had struck down the Affordable Care Act as unconstitutional. The interpretive analysis of 117 print and online articles, using techniques of grounded theory, found that coverage of the error focused on five main themes: speed, accountability, complexity, context, and audience reaction. Drawing on themes from political economy and media ethics, the authors argue that journalists’ reactions to the error were often two sided, on the one hand castigating CNN for stressing speed, while themselves stressing who had the information first. Additionally, it is suggested that journalists attempted to fulfill the dual role of ombudsman and protector, admonishing colleagues who had made mistakes while simultaneously trying to protect the reputation of their industry as a whole.