Professor Hailey Authenticates Forgeries

As discussed previously, David E. Hailey, Jr., Ph.D, Associate Professor at Utah State University, has been working hard to authenticate the Rathergate documents. According to this report, Hailey has now published his findings and states:

"All indicators imply they are authentic."

[ ... ]

If Hailey had been one of the experts advising CBS, "I would have told them that from my point of view, the memos are worthy of presenting to the public."

However, it seems Hailey's definition of 'authentic' has nothing to do with the specific attacks on George Bush contained on the documents. He bases his opinion on the capabilities of the typewriter available in the early 1970s. It needs to be noted that he's not the only expert weighing in on the typewriter issue. Hailey is, however, the only 'expert' who believes that a 1970s vintage typewriter can emulate the capabilities of Microsoft Word. By the way, Hailey has also been found to be a financial supporter of John Kerry for president. He has also admitted to emotional instability when his credibility and credentials are challenged.

At the forefront of the investigation of Hailey's methods and motives is Wizbang which, oddly enough, has been characterized unfavorably in the Deseret News.

An unidentified person claiming to represent the www.wizbangblog.com Web site called Smitten [USU English Department Head Jeffrey Smitten] and accused Hailey of "academic misconduct." There were 50 pages of blog entries critical of Hailey on the Wizbang site as of Friday.

I don't believe that Kevin Aylward, or any other writers for Wizbang, would ever fail to identify themselves. And, if there are 50 pages of blog entries about this issue at Wizbang, they are hidden. I visit the site often and I haven't seen them.

Apparently, the newspaper has a loyalty to Hailey and Utah State University.