Not sure if anyone here has heared about the case Claas Relotius before. Relotius was a German journalist mainly working for "Der Spiegel" and well known for his remarkable, well-written articles. He wrote primarily about civil war, refugee children, racism, often with a pillorying undertone about the heartbreaking cruel world we live in. His view of the world (which he incorporated subliminally into his articles) was well received in his circles; he was awarded over 19 prizes.

Long story short: In 2018 was revealed that most of his articles were fake or embellished. He got away with it for so long because everyone _wanted_ the world to be the way he portrayed it, almost nobody looked closer.

I think this is symptomatic of modern journalism: Many journalists are only interested in getting recognition in their circles, so they do whatever is necessary to get it, even if it means bending facts. This is also problematic because it casts a bad light on reputable journalists who reflect the events of the "boring" world correctly and not through lies or Hollywood stories.