Getting an article published in the news

So, here’s the deal...
About 20 days ago, I sat down for an interview with a reporter from The New York Post, and we explicitly agreed that the piece couldn't go live until I gave the final okay, which she totally agreed to.

But then, out of nowhere, they just went ahead and published the whole thing without ever checking back with me.

I guess the big question is, can a news organization actually get away with a screw-up like that?

Best,

It’s tough. Without a ton of witnesses, it’s all just hearsay at this point.
When you're dealing with stuff like this, you have to get everything in writing to actually protect your rights.

Matthew King said:It’s tough. Without a ton of witnesses, it’s all just hearsay at this point.
When you're dealing with stuff like this, you have to get everything in writing to actually protect your rights.

...or maybe if there's some kind of recording somewhere, but even then...

placidgull21 said:...or maybe if there's some kind of recording somewhere, but even then...

there isn't any video, but she actually sent a text from her phone—you know, the reporter's phone—basically saying how sorry she was that it got published without permission and that The New York Post just ran the story without her even knowing...

You really ought to take a close look at the Media Act and the Freedom of Information Act.
It’s such a shame that these kinds of situations even happen, but if you want to protect yourself, please, at least make sure you're communicating via email. 🤷 That is exactly what I suggested to a friend of mine just the other day.
He was being hounded by a reporter from The New York Post who was relentlessly pushing to publish his full name and photos (which also included several other anonymous people). Poor guy—he’s just a student and didn't even realize what was happening, so he called me after she had already pressured him into giving up his name.
My advice was simple: tell her explicitly in writing that he does not consent, and then make sure he saves that email.
There are definitely some total jerks out there in the journalism world. Honestly, it breaks my heart to say it, but I actually graduated from journalism school. 😢

crimsonhawk55 said:You really ought to take a close look at the Media Act and the Freedom of Information Act.
It’s such a shame that these kinds of situations even happen, but if you want to protect yourself, please, at least make sure you're communicating via email. 🤷 That is exactly what I suggested to a friend of mine just the other day.
He was being hounded by a reporter from The New York Post who was relentlessly pushing to publish his full name and photos (which also included several other anonymous people). Poor guy—he’s just a student and didn't even realize what was happening, so he called me after she had already pressured him into giving up his name.
My advice was simple: tell her explicitly in writing that he does not consent, and then make sure he saves that email.
There are definitely some total jerks out there in the journalism world. Honestly, it breaks my heart to say it, but I actually graduated from journalism school. 😢

I’ve also had a pretty shitty experience with a reporter from The New York Post.
She completely ignored our verbal agreement, showed zero respect for the party involved, and just totally disregarded everything I told her...
Yeah, it’s hacks like that who give the whole profession a bad name.

Luckily, I did have one amazing experience with journalists once, but that was with a TV network, CNN....