For once there was a great discussion about this whole fiasco on reddit (yesterday): https://www.reddit.com/r/worldnews/comments/5j0ahs/us_got_it...

In particular - this comment [https://www.reddit.com/r/worldnews/comments/5j0ahs/us_got_it...]. I for one was young at the time, but simply didn't know about the office of special plans, for example.

News report seems accurate to me: US government officials from the Bush administration made these claims to NY Times reporters, and they reported them. That isn't 'fake news' unless you're claiming that government officials never made the claims?

There's a yawning chasm between shitty journalism (regurgitation of statements like in this article) and just making up pernicious nonsense.

Funny! I read the first paragraph and maybe not? "Bush administration officials said today."

Still, the media outlet/sources relationship needs to change. You are either a journalist or a propaganda wing.

In all seriousness, how much of this was total bull shit? 100% or less?

Couldn't have said it better. Fake news is in the eye of the beholder.

That sadly includes a lot of things being posted now on someone's Facebook page about Obama being a secret muslim....