Ask not why I'm writing a post about Sarah Palin's hair thinning. Ask why Serge Kovaleski, Jim Rutenberg, William Yardley, and others from the New York Times wrote an article making that false claim ("Palin’s Long March to a Short-Notice Resignation", [1], via [2]):

Friends worried that she appeared anxious and underweight. Her hair had thinned to the point where she needed emergency help from her hairdresser and close friend, Jessica Steele... “Honestly, I think all of it just broke her heart,” Ms. Steele said in an interview at her beauty parlor in Wasilla, the Beehive.

Unfortunately for the NYT, Steele claims in her Twitter feed that she never said anything of the sort, posting a series of "tweets" like this [3]:

I will continue 2 tell people: I never said Sarah Palin's hair is thinning! The Left is desperate to attack Sarah Palin with stupid lies!!

If I find out which reporter Steele spoke to, I'll provide an update. Others listed as contributing to the article are Jo Becker and Kim Severson.

Note that this is in the citizen journalism tips section because this is an example of how to write posts that have a long-term impact on the mainstream media; the "Conservatives4Palin" writer made a few mistakes in the structure of his post that this post seeks to correct. In case that's not immediately clear, see the other entries at the last page.

This post is also an assignment: find others discussing this non-story and take them to task on your own site or in their comments sections.

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[1] nytimes . com/2009/07/13/us/politics/13palin.html
[2] conservatives4palin . com/2009/07/palin-hairdresser-nyt-was-full-of-crap.html
[3] twitter . com/JessicaBeehive/status/2724549544 (she's now @akbeehivebeauty)