i am pretty sympathetic with the plight of michael isikoff , and not only because i remember him from when i was a kid at the washington star. actually he was a kid too. but he was an investigative reporter and i was a copy boy. he apparently offered to resign  over the koran-in-the-toilet story. but investigative journalists take risks like this all the time, and isikoff has broken a great many stories over the years. people who think he's a democrat should remember what he did to clinton. anyway, how many of us would have known what sort or reponse that little piece would elicit? really? though that is of course not to say we should publish fairly harmless bullshit. but who knows what bit of the story you're reporting is gonna turn out to be nuclear?