Had Fitzgerald not confessed to the lie and informed major newspapers, it is likely that the quote would have been cited to one of them. In the days following, only one newspaper (''[[The Guardian]]'') publicly apologized for the use of a source that can be a tool for duping the public.<ref>https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2009/may/04/journalism-obituaries-shane-fitzgerald</ref> Other newspapers, such as the [[Washington Post]], simply deleted their articles from online archives. | Had Fitzgerald not confessed to the lie and informed major newspapers, it is likely that the quote would have been cited to one of them. In the days following, only one newspaper (''[[The Guardian]]'') publicly apologized for the use of a source that can be a tool for duping the public.<ref>https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2009/may/04/journalism-obituaries-shane-fitzgerald</ref> Other newspapers, such as the [[Washington Post]], simply deleted their articles from online archives. |