The Hoaxer was Professional; Barkai Very Much Less So

Of course, if you don't allow for a response/reaction from the person involved, if you don't act accoding to the journalism code, then this is what happens:-

Hoaxer convinces Army Radio that Meridor is waiving Washington posting

Army Radio reporter Razi Barkai was the victim yesterday of a strange practical joke: He told listeners that Israel's ambassador-designate to Washington, Sallai Meridor, had decided to give up the appointment after consulting a maharishi. Barkai got the information from his producers, who received a call from an individual who identified himself as an aide to Meridor.

Barkai said on the air that Meridor was apparently an admirer of the maharishi, and that "Sallai was going to a press conference in which he would announce his decision to turn down the job. No official statement has been released, but this is what we hear from Washington."

Later in the program, Barkai said: "I hope we have not fallen victim to a joke to end all jokes. People are calling the station and saying 'Listen, Razi, have you gone crazy? Is this an April Fool's joke?' So we are checking it again, but as we said, sources very close to Meridor said that he has decided to give up the appointment. But people from the Prime Minister's Office, the prime minister's bureau, the foreign minister's bureau, and all kinds of places are saying that there's no truth to it. We can't reach Sallai meanwhile. I don't know why he's keeping silent."

Barkai told Haaretz yesterday that the individual impersonating Meridor's aide "took us for a ride very professionally." Barkai said that the man had Meridor's number, according to the station's phone records, and the program's research assistant had held several phone calls with him, beginning the night before. Throughout, the man sounded believable and professional.

"Why didn't we call Sallai at home? We tried to, but I don't know if there was an answer. We also tried to reach his office."

A statement from Army Radio said that the staff of Barkai's program were mislead and thus had unintentionally misinformed listeners. "Army Radio and the program staff apologize for the mistake, as Razi Barkai has already done on the air," the statement said, adding that Army Radio is considering legal action against the impostor.

Meridor's wife, Noa Meridor, said that her husband had "taken the matter with a smile."

You see, not all media criticism is 'extreme right-wing idiocy'.