Drudge promotes story about Clinton's alleged failure to tip, but includes only campaign's refutation -- not restaurant's
On the front page of the Drudge Report on November 8, Internet gossip Matt Drudge linked to ABC News and National Public Radio (NPR) articles that reported Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's (D-NY) presidential campaign did not leave a tip after a stop at a Maid-Rite Restaurant in Marshalltown, Iowa. Accompanying the two links was a line of text reading: "**Clinton campaign official: 'The campaign spent $157 and left a $100 tip at the Maid-Rite Restaurant' ..." In fact, it was not just the Clinton campaign that rebutted the claim, as Drudge suggested; the restaurant itself affirmed that the campaign had left a tip.
Indeed, both ABC and NPR attached clarifications to their original reports, noting that the Clinton campaign claims to have left $100 in tip money and that the restaurant manager, Brad Crawford, confirmed that a tip was left. An "Editor's Note" on the November 8 NPR article asserted: "NPR contacted Maid-Rite manager Brad Crawford, who confirmed that a bill was paid and tip money was left. Crawford, who was not in the restaurant at the time, said that he believes a campaign staffer left the money with one of his employees, but 'where Hillary was sitting, there was no tip left.' " An "update" to the November 8 post on ABCNews.com's Political Radar blog stated: "Sensing the story was reaching the tipping point, ABC News' Eloise Harper contacted Brad Crawford, manager of Maid-Rite caught in the political mixer, who said the senator's staff did pay a tip but 'it might have not been disbursed properly.' " While Drudge linked to those updates, he indicated only that the Clinton campaign refuted the report, omitting the fact that the restaurant has done so as well.
—R.C.
