東京新聞いらない高校生が告発 望月衣塑子氏の虚偽本回収事件

2026年9月11日に刊行された東京新聞・望月衣塑子記者と内田樹さんの対談本で、日本中学生新聞を創刊した高校生について、本人が話してもいない内容や事実と異なるエピソードが複数記載されていました。10月28日に高校生側が指摘し、11月1日に朝日新聞出版が販売中止と約8000部の回収を決定。望月記者はチェック不足を認め謝罪しています。記者の基本である事実確認を怠った結果で、信頼を大きく損なう最低最悪の出来事です。チェック不足とは考えられないです。

だから、メディアはマスごみと言われるのだなあと感じるニュースでした。

Tokyo Shimbun Is Unnecessary: A High School Student Speaks Out About the Book Recall Scandal Involving Isoko Mochizuki

In a book of conversations between Tokyo Shimbun reporter Isoko Mochizuki and Tatsuru Uchida, published on September 11, 2026, multiple accounts concerning the high school student who founded the Japan Junior High School Newspaper were included, even though the student had never said those things, along with anecdotes that differed from the facts. On October 28, the student pointed out these inaccuracies, and on November 1, Asahi Shimbun Publications decided to halt sales and recall approximately 8,000 copies. Reporter Mochizuki acknowledged that she had failed to check the content adequately and apologized.

This incident resulted from neglecting fact-checking, one of the most basic responsibilities of a journalist, and has severely undermined trust. It is difficult to believe that this was merely a matter of insufficient checking.

This was a news story that made me feel that this is exactly why the media is called “mass gomi” (literally, “mass trash”).