Monica Crowley, the former Fox News commentator and Washington Times opinion editor, has finally spoken out about the plagiarism charges that derailed her White House career.
In a brief March 7 interview with Fox News’ Sean Hannity, Crowley claimed the plagiarism charges were a “despicable straight up political hit job” that has been “debunked.” She added, “My editor has completely supported me and backed me up.” Hannity told her, “I don’t think you should answer any of these people’s questions.”
CNN found Jan. 10 plagiarism in at least seven of Crowley’s columns for the Washington Times, as iMediaEthics reported back in January. The plagiarism charge seems to be correct — see below a side-by-side comparison.
A side-by-side comparison from CNN. (Credit: CNN/screenshot)
Despite the damning side-by-side comparisons provided by CNN, the Washington Times still has not added any correction or editor’s note acknowledging the problems in Crowley’s work, iMediaEthics notes.
For the full backstory on the claims against Crowley and plagiarism in her her book, read iMediaEthics’ report here. Crowley’s book, What the (Bleep) Just Happened?, was recalled by the publisher, HarperCollins, amidst the plagiarism accusations.
Following Crowley’s Fox News interview, iMediaEthics tracked down the Washington Times columns that CNN flagged for plagiarism to see if there were any corrections or editor’s notes appended. There were none.
At the time of the original plagiarism accusations in January, Washington Times‘ editor Christopher Dolan promised “The Times will review her work as a columnist.” iMediaEthics has contacted Dolan to ask what happened to that review. We also tweeted Crowley for comment.
Without commenting on the plagiarism accusations, Crowley announced January 16 she wouldn’t take a job in the White House, after all. President Trump appointed her as a National Security Council spokesperson in December.