Clearing the Decks at The New Republic

The New Republic has famously had a bad streak of press the past decade or so, what with people making things up publishing them under the magazine’s name.

The latest imbroglio does, however, present TNR with an opportunity to clear the decks:

An Apology to Our Readers

After an investigation, THE NEW REPUBLIC has determined that virtually every position we have taken for a number of years, including — but not exclusive to — our support of President Bush’s war in Iraq; our accusations that people who advocated cooperating with US allies and other countries, as well as conforming to the Geneva Conventions and other treaties, were “isolationists”; our jingoistic labelling as “soft” of those who say terrorists — while dangerous — pose no threat to the existence of the United States as a country; and our endorsement of Joe Lieberman for the Democratic nomination to the presidency in 2004 were influenced by notes from someone calling himself “sprezzatura”. We deeply regret misleading our readers.

Franklin Foer
Editor, The New Republic