The Badger Herald news staff discovered last Wednesday, Nov. 29, that our state editor had plagiarized a significant portion of his published work. We offer our sincerest apologies to our readers and to the University of Wisconsin community.
Dan Powell was immediately suspended and his employment was formally terminated the following morning. A thorough investigation of his published work began upon discovery of the first incident and has revealed further examples of misconduct.
The offenses spanned several months this semester and included misappropriating information, wording and quotes from a variety of publications without attribution. At times, entire sentences or paragraphs were copied word-for-word. The offended publications include The Associated Press, the Wisconsin State Journal and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, all of which have been notified.
As of press time, 12 articles have been identified and removed from The Badger Herald website, and the investigation will continue until we have thoroughly examined the breadth of his work. We believe we caught the most offensive example before it went to print last Wednesday.
While we have no tolerance for plagiarism and dealt with this matter swiftly, it was our hope to protect Mr. Powell's identity in this formal apology. However, with at least one other media outlet electing to identify him, it has become evident that we can no longer attempt to shelter him from future implications of his wrongdoing.
The Badger Herald deeply values journalistic integrity, and the newspaper was founded on the premise of providing quality news to the UW community. Our writers recognize the seriousness of plagiarism, and we will remain vigilant in our pursuit of the highest journalistic standards.
Sincerely,
Taylor Hughes
Editor in Chief
