Eds: SUBS 13th graf, ``In Boulder ...'' with one to add name of
author.<p> ROSWELL, N.M. (AP) … The sports editor of the Roswell Daily
Record has been fired for fabricating part of a news story
about a golf tournament in which he quoted a fictional
character from the movie ``Caddyshack.''<p> In Colorado, a newspaper dropped a contributor's weekly
column after an author in California alleged he had lifted
whole passages from her book.<p> Gregory M. Jones was dismissed by the Daily Record on June
17, the day after his article about a Father's Day golf
tournament at the Roswell Country Club appeared on the sports
page, Editor Mike Bush said.<p> ``He got a bunch of scores and wanted to make it more
interesting,'' Bush said Thursday. He said he did not know if
Jones attended the tournament.<p> He said the newspaper insists on accuracy and objectivity
and ``we don't tolerate anything less than that.''<p> Jones, 24, said he was shocked by his firing and did not
intend to deceive his editors or readers.<p> ``It was tongue in cheek. It was sports. I was trying to be
light and breezy. I was trying to put out a story that people
might like to read,'' he said in a telephone interview.<p> Jones was hired in July 2002 as a reporter, was promoted to
state-business editor in November and became sports editor in
April.<p> Bush said the story contained three fictitious paragraphs
referring to a Carl Spangler who claimed to work at the course.
In ``Caddyshack,'' Bill Murray played a golf course worker
named Carl Spackler.<p> Jones quoted Spangler as saying he invented a new kind of
grass for the tournament. The quotation in Jones' story is
taken directly from ``Caddyshack'':<p> ``'This is a hybrid ... of bluegrass, Kentucky bluegrass,
featherbed bent and northern California sensemilia (sic),'
Spangler said. 'The amazing stuff about this, is that you can
play 36 holes on it in the afternoon, take it home and just get
stoned to the bejeezus-belt that night on the stuff.'''<p> Sinsemilla is a potent form of marijuana.<p> Bush said the Daily Record received ``a couple of
complaints'' about the story. The newspaper ran a correction.<p> In Boulder, Colo., the Daily Camera discontinued Neil
Rosenthal's column after the newspaper received the complaint
from Sandy Hotchkiss, a California resident and author of the
book ``Why Is It Always About You? Saving Yourself from the
Narcissists in Your Life''<p> Rosenthal, a family therapist, cited the book in his column
but also used passages from it verbatim without using quotes,
editor and publisher Colleen Conant told readers Saturday.<p> She said she met with Rosenthal last week. ``Rosenthal
admits to an error in judgment, but believes he adequately
sourced the material he used from Hotchkiss' book because twice
in the columns he referred to the book,'' Conant wrote.<p> ``Rosenthal regrets his actions and I am convinced that it
was never his intention to plagiarize,'' Conant added.<p> Rosenthal did not immediately return a phone message left at
his office Monday by The Associated Press.<p> AP-ES-07-07-03 1032EDT