After it emerged in a WaPo interview that Nick Schmidle, author of the blockbuster bin Laden piece, never spoke to any members of SEAL Team 6, a controversy erupted about the report's veracity. C. Christine Fair summarizes the prosecution's case:
Surely a journalist or an editor with a commitment to informing – rather than amusing – a public would understand that disclosing this simple fact is critical to allowing readers to determine how much credibility they should put into this account. In the absence of such disclosure, we are left asking whether this was second or third-hand information? Who are the people that he spoke to and how credible is their information? Such an egregious exercise of incaution raises a number of questions about the entire report.
Exum sides with Schmidle. Schmidle's editor says he knows who Schmidle's sources are and is satisfied with them.
The Dish 