Ravi Somaiya

Ravi Somaiya, reporter for the New York Times London bureau, suggested “deep cuts in social services” on the part of the Conservative-led coalition government and "social deprivation" (whatever that means) bore some blame for the riots and looting that wrecked neighborhoods in London.

Shops and flats were stormed and burned in the wake of a police shooting of a gang suspect in the London neighborhood of Tottenham.  An online headline over his August 8 story found a familiar left-wing villain: “Budget Cuts and Scorn for Police Seen Fueling London Riot.”

It's official: The New York Times got pranked by the girls of "Dating a Banker Anonymous," referred to in a fizzy Times profile last month as a "support group" dedicated to women whose "monthly Bergdorf's allowance has been halved."

Linda Holmes, blogging at National Public Radio, was dubious from the start: "Isn't it totally obvious that this is a put-on?" She dismissed the idea of a "support group" and figured the people behind the blog were angling for a book deal. The Times responded to Holmes, defending the piece and snottily concluding:

I'm not sure what is thought might be fake about this. Ravi did talk to some of the men to verify the relationships and get their side.

But Holmes's skepticism has been vindicated, based on the "Editor's Note" in Wednesday's Times admitting the January 28 article by freelance reporter Ravi Somaiya was overblown: