Wire Service's Objectivity Under Scrutiny

Deep in a House report on the circumstances of Pat Tillman's death is a juicy detail that has the chattering classes in a lather: the text of a 2004 email in which an AP reporter tells Karl Rove to “keep up the fight.” Coming on the heels of a Politico analysis of the wire service's new "accountability journalism" initiative, the tidbit is the talk of the town, Gawker reports.

The AP reporter, Ron Fournier, is now Washington bureau chief, and charges of bias are flying. He said in a statement last night: “I regret the breezy nature of the correspondence.” The email continues, referring to Tillman, “The Lord creates men and women like this all over the world. But only the great and free countries allow them to flourish.”