<p>Not sure if this article has been posted yet. What I found interesting are the reader comments that follow. The vast majority are blasting the CD for their reporting and calling for Jackie to be brought up on honor charges for lying. What an incredible turn of events we have seen in this fiasco.</p>
<p>I don’t agree that the only victim of the Rolling Stone article was the fraternity. </p>
<p>First, the article did real damage to the University’s reputation with the embellished Jackie story and comcomitant smearing of current students by characterizing them as social climbing sociopaths. The newly released emails and audio of Erdley’s interview with Sullivan show that the writer never intended to get the University’s side of her most explosive charge, their supposed failure to act on Jackie’s assault – the writer and fact checker simply never asked University officials about the incident. This was consistent with the many other journalistic failures that have already been noted. The Rector’s description of the article as “drive-by journalism” is very apt.</p>
<p>The biggest victim of the RS article, however, is sadly rape-victim advocacy itself. While UVa has responded with positive new investments in security, open discussions and actions addressing culture and prevention, there is a groundswell of critics who have pounced on this article as an opportunity to question whether campus rape is even a problem at all, anywhere. This article has made it more difficult for rape victims to be believed. I can’t imagine how that feels to someone like Emily Renda, a rape survivor and advocate who originally connected the reporter to Jackie. Renda herself is portrayed in the article only as a survivor who self medicates with alcohol, no mention of her advocacy efforts as an undergrad or her employment with the university post grad. Or Brian Head, president of the group One in Four, who was merely quoted in RS describing the work hard, play hard UVa culture. This writer deliberately ommited the work of activists on Grounds because it didnt suit her diatribe. And in the process Erdley has made their work, and their counterparts at other schools, more difficult.</p>
<p>The fraternities will continue with ever increasing scrutiny of their parties and pledging as has been the trend for many years before this article ever came out. Phi Psi will perhaps end up owning Roling Stone.</p>
<p>Man, this always happens. I ALWAYS get somewhere after the fun dries up. Now, when I go (if the admissions gods allow), the frats and partying are going to be regulated and boring… all to solve a nonexistent problem. Bleh. </p>
<p>Bass - There will still be a great deal of fun and brotherhood to be had at fraternities, even if the parties are a little more controlled. It would be desirable to further cut back on the binge drinking, for everyone’s health and safety. One of the reasonable rules that was instituted was a ban on alcoholic punch, because it can be hard to tell how much alcohol is in it.</p>
<p>marie1234, the students and recent alumni that I have spoken to no longer believe any version of Jackies story. They are now moving to the anger phase given how this whole circus has affected the University. It has been a distracting semester to say the least. </p>
<p>If you read all of the recently revealed deceit that she used on her friends even before the alleged incident, and all of the variations in her story, it is hard to believe anything that Jackie said. </p>
<p>Remember that Jackie tried to pull her account out of the Rolling Stone article before it was finalized, but Rolling Stone refused. </p>
<p>I can’t believe that Rolling Stone STILL has not retracted the article, but instead only added a weak disclaimer to the beginning of an article full of lies. </p>
<p>Last I looked, Phi Psi’s name was still plastered on the top of the RS article webpage, even though there is no evidence that was the fraternity involved - even if something bad did happen to her that night.</p>
<p>My UVa student son agrees with Pres. Sullivan that the energy needs to be focused on preventing future assaults. He said there are many other UVa students who believe honor charges should be filed against Jackie.</p>
<p>Guilluame: I think when the jury reads Rolling Stone’s emails to UVa officials (and similar ones to Phi Psi that are yet to be released), I think it will be obvious to the jury that RS did not use the most basic level of care to try to confirm the facts in their story that involved Phi Psi. </p>