The New York Times public editor opined today on the paper's troubled story involving Katherine Jackson and John Branca, the attorney for Michael Jackson's estate. In addition to needing two editor's notes to clarify the story, now public editor Clark Hoyt writes:

Readers complain to me constantly about anonymous sources in The Times, and I see them sometimes used in ways that seem too casual, in violation of the paper’s own high standards. Top editors say they are trying to instill vigilance. The Jackson episode shows how vital that is: one lapse can mean big trouble.

Central players in this episode include Los Angeles-based NYT reporter Solomon Moore and James Bates of Sitrick and Company, representing Branca.

Noted: Hoyt also criticizes the NYT for basing a trend story on the family effects of social media too heavily on the anecdotes of social media users with ties to the NYT.

Also: The New York Times is now selling wine to its readers.