Shattered Glass (2003)

Steve Zahn: Adam Penenberg

Photos 

Quotes 

• [after debunking Stephen Glass's New Republic article, Hack Heaven] 

  Adam Penenberg : But there is one thing in this story that checks out.

  Kambiz Foroohar : What's that?

  Adam Penenberg : [sarcastically]  There does appear to be a state in the union named Nevada.

• Adam Penenberg : [During a conference call]  A few other people we can't seem to locate: Julie Farthwork, Frank Juliet, and Ian Restil's agent Joe Hiert. We called the numbers you gave us, got voicemails for all three, and the emails were sent back. "No address" or "account closed".

  Stephen Glass : Really? Because I've emailed them about a million times each. Hiert's online all day long.

  Adam Penenberg : Did you ever call these people and get them directly?

  Stephen Glass : No. I always left messages and spoke to them when they called me back.

  Adam Penenberg : And the references in the article to Nevada law enforcement officials... was Jim Ghort the only one you spoke to?

  Stephen Glass : Yes.

  Adam Penenberg : Do you have a phone number for him?

  Stephen Glass : Yeah. Definitely.

  Adam Penenberg : By the way, what was your basis for writing that Jukt was a "big-time software company"?

  Stephen Glass : I didn't. That was added by the copy desk.

  Adam Penenberg : And, uh, was the hacker's conference where you first met the Jukt executives?

  Stephen Glass : No, that part of the article is misleading. I, uh... I was never in the Restils' home at all.

  Adam Penenberg : You weren't in Restil's home with the Jukt executives?

  Stephen Glass : No, I didn't mean to imply that I had been.

  [later] 

  Stephen Glass : Sorry about that. Did the fax come through OK?

  Adam Penenberg : Yes, it did. I think the address must've gotten garbled. We can't find the site.

  Stephen Glass : OK. You want to read it back to me?

  Adam Penenberg : Sure. You gave us "members.aol.juktn.html".

  Stephen Glass : Wait. Was that an "M"?

  Adam Penenberg : I'm sorry?

  Stephen Glass : After Jukt, was that an "M", as in "Micronics"?

  Adam Penenberg : No, it was an "N". As in "not working".

  Stephen Glass : Try "M".

  Kambiz Foroohar : OK.

  Stephen Glass : Sorry about that. I was just rushing.

  Kambiz Foroohar : Of course. But I do find myself wondering, Stephen, why would a major software company put their website where only AOL members can access it, as opposed to the entire web?

  Stephen Glass : I have no idea. I don't have a website, so I don't really know that much about them. I would trust you guys to know better than me.

  Kambiz Foroohar : [while looking at the fake website]  OK, looks like... we have the Jukt website up now. I have to say, Stephen, this looks very suspicious to me.

• Adam Penenberg : [refering to the discovery that Stephen fabricated his stories]  This guy is toast.

• Chuck Lane : [During a conference call, over the speakerphone, responding to Kambiz Foroohar's and Adam Penenberg's suspicions after seeing Stephen's fake website]  How so?

  Kambiz Foroohar : Quite frankly, it doesn't look like a real website. Looks like a site that was created to fool someone.

  Chuck Lane : I don't know much about computers, could somebody do that?

  Kambiz Foroohar : Of course.

  Adam Penenberg : Very easily.

  Kambiz Foroohar : So easily, in fact, it's incredible.

  Stephen Glass : [after looking through his notes]  Hey, do you guys still want that number for, uh, Jim Ghort? Because I just found it in my notes.

  Adam Penenberg : Yeah, sure.

  Stephen Glass : All right, 605-64...

  Adam Penenberg : [politely interrupts him]  Oh wait.

  Stephen Glass : Sorry?

  Adam Penenberg : [referring to the zip code]  Uh... six zero five, that's not Nevada.

  Stephen Glass : [realizing he's been caught lying]  Oh.

  Stephen Glass : [after exhaling and pretending to be looking through his notes, trying to cover up his lie]  I guess I got him mixed up with another source. Uh... sorry about that one. Oh, you know what it was? Jim Ghort was actually the guy who told me about the law enforcement officials. Um... I don't know what I was thinking. I'm gonna have to...

  Chuck Lane : [interrupts him]  Steve. Give them the number.

• Kambiz Foroohar : [Adam walks in on Kambiz at a urinal]  Adam, can you give a man a minute?

  Adam Penenberg : Oh, yeah. I'm sorry. Uh, it's just that... this New Republic piece is a fucking sieve.

  [walking with Kambiz] 

  Adam Penenberg : I started with a check on Jukt Micronics, which is supposed to be this "major software company" in California. I went through every search engine on the web, no matches found. So I called 411, in every area code in the state, there's no listing anywhere for a company called "Jukt Micronics." I tried the California Tax Franchise Board, there's no record of taxes ever having been paid by a company called "Jukt Micronics." Tried the State Comptroller's Office, no license has ever been applied for by a company using that name. Then I called all the hackers I know, asking if any had heard of a "National Assembly of Hackers" or of a hacker by the name of "Big, Bad, Bionic Boy": nothing. I even tried Ian Restil himself. There's no listing for the kid in D.C., Virginia, Maryland. There's no record of him ever having attended a public school before. More?

  Kambiz Foroohar : Please.

  Adam Penenberg : Uh, this guy Joe Hiert was described in the Glass piece as being this former basketball agent, yet no one by that name has ever been registered with the NBA and none of my hackers knew of him. I even checked the names of every government...

  [looks at Andy] 

  Andy Fox : I was just getting some coffee.

  Adam Penenberg : I even checked the names of every government employee quoted in the piece against a book listing the names of every government employee in the entire United States. None of the Glass sources were listed.