Rolling Stone backpedals on campus gang rape story

WASHINGTON DC, USA – Rolling Stone all but retracted a story about a gang rape at a major US university Friday December 5, saying it was wrong to have trusted without question the alleged victim’s version of what happened.

The 9,000-word story, published on November 19, prompted student protests and the suspension of fraternities at the University of Virginia, while rekindling a national debate about sexual violence on American college campuses.

Unusually, at the request of her subject, a first-year student identified only as Jackie, journalist Sabrina Rubin Erdely never contacted the men who allegedly took part in the gang rape during a frat house party.

“In the face of new information, there now appear to be discrepancies in Jackie’s account, and we have come to the conclusion that our trust in her was misplaced,” the magazine said on its website.

“We were trying to be sensitive to the unfair shame and humiliation many women feel after a sexual assault and now regret the decision to not contact the alleged assaulters to get their account.” – Rappler.com