Lying Journalist, Wannabe Lawyer, Still Retracting Stories Decades Later

Former New Republic staff writer Stephen Glass, who now works as a non-lawyer at a Beverly Hills law firm, will issue a letter of retraction in the January 2016 issue of Harper’s magazine, for a story published in 1998. After nearly two decades Glass is still retracting work produced for New Republic and other publications. His belated mea culpa for the unprecedented journalistic fraud he perpetrated is likely tied to an effort to become eligible for a California law license. Last year Glass was denied a license because of his misdeeds, but he may reapply in 2017. The Harper’s story, “Prophets and Losses,” purportedly detailed Glass’s experience as a telephone psychic, which he confirmed was almost entirely fabricated, including detailed, lengthy exchanges with customers.