In response to this earlier post by the hardworking (if at times misguided) staff, Washington Post executive editor Marty Baron sent this:

John,

Your facts are wrong.

I didn’t end the ombudsman column. Richard Chacon was the last ombudsman. He left in 2006 to join the Deval Patrick campaign. He reported directly to the publisher, and the publisher made the decision on whether to replace him or not. He decided not to.

The notion that I eliminated the ombudsman upon my arrival at the Globe is obviously false. We had an ombudsman from the time of my arrival until 2006, when the publisher decided not to replace Chacon.

I’m hardly allergic to press or (self) criticism. I do think the criticism, however, should be based on fact.

And, by the way, this decision at the Post isn’t mine to make either. It’s a collective decision involving several people, including the publisher and the editorial page editor.

Marty

We – and the record – stand corrected. Apologies to Marty Baron for the errors of fact.