Stephen Glass

A rising star at The New Republic, Stephen Glass was considered something of a phenom. Before he was 30, he had front page articles and was making a six-figure salary, publishing articles in Slate, Rolling Stone, Harper's, and George. Most of these pieces contained false information, used by Glass to make the story more interesting and to prove his point more effectively. In his deception, Glass routinely created fake websites, voicemail boxes, and phone numbers. He bought cell phones and enlisted the help of his friends and family to foil the factcheckers at the magazine. Eventually found out, he has written a book about his experiences and has a movie being made about him, due out November, 2003. He recently graduated from Georgetown Law School, and is now clerking for D.C. Superior Court Judge A. Franklin Burgess, Jr.

How Did Glass Get Caught?

Journalist Adam Penenberg recalls how he stumbled upon Glass's deceit.

And Why Did He Do It?

Theories abound, mainly centered on Glass's psychology. The role of the increasing winner-take-all stakes of journalism are mentioned by only a few critics.

	An exhaustive investigation of Glass's world by his alumni magazine, The Pennsylvania Gazette.
	Competition and drive to succeed played a key role, suggests sidebar to above article.

Cashing in on Deceit

Glass's reward for his cheating was a six-figure contract to write a book for Simon & Schuster. The Fabulist is an autobiographical novel featuring a writer named, of all things, Stephen Glass who works at a magazine and is fired for creating facts to get his articles published. Glass appeared on 60 Minutes to tell his story and promote the book, which has been critically panned.

	A transcript of the 60 Minutes interview
	Slate's review of the 60 Minutes Appearance
	An excerpt from The Fabulist
	City Paper article about Glass's prestigious new job as a Superior Court law clerk.