BEING OFFLINE AND PAYING NO ATTENTION TO THE NEWS all weekend (which was wonderful), I missed the latest developments in the ongoing unravelling of the BBC. But Jeff Jarvis has been on the story and he’s got a devastating link-filled post. Excerpt:

We must know from the BBC what happened. The BBC must launch a Blair-like (that is, Jayson-Blair-like) investigation of Gilligan and his reporting. The BBC’s credibility demands it. The credibilty of the profession demands it.

My fellow journalists should demand it as well. Intead of standing in a press gang and asking Tony Blair about blood on his hands, those reporters should turn to their BBC colleagues and ask about the blood on their hands. A source of theirs killed himself over this story. Why?

The truth is coming out and that truth is:

The Blair government did not sex up this story.
The BBC and Andrew Gilligan are the ones who sexed up this story.

Meanwhile Tom Maguire is administering a skeptical deconstruction to a recent David Corn scandal piece.

And, in an entirely unrelated matter, Andrew Sullivan is writing about crucifixion. Having myself actually been crucified — I was understudy for “Thief on the Left” in the Smoky Mountain Passion Play back in high school — I can attest that it’s an entirely unenjoyable experience, even without the nails, and even when it’s all in, er, fun. My advice: avoid crucifixion if at all possible.