BBC finally doubting the fake metal codices

Many of us have known from early on that the metal codices that emerged earlier this year are fakes. Note in particular Jim Davila's Fake Metal Codices Watch and Tom Verenna's essay at Bible and Interpretation.  As Jim Davila now notes, the BBC begins backtracking and as Jim West says, It's nice to see the BBC catching up with what we all knew months ago. The new article:

Doubts over authenticity of "ancient Christian" books
Kevin Connolly

One of the disappointing things here is the lack of reference to the earlier article by Robert Pigott, which needs explicit correction. After that article appeared on 29 March, I wrote a friendly email to Robert Pigott (5 April) explaining that the consensus among experts was that the codices were fakes, and offering to point him in the direction of some clear, helpful blog posts and articles by experts. He never replied.  Nevertheless, progress is progress even if it is done in this way by a different writer apparently unaware of previous mistakes.

Update: further comments from Tom Verenna.

Continued Media Fail on the Fake Metal Codices

Over on Paleojudaica, Jim Davila is keeping an eye on the Fake Metal Codices with a new and uninformed piece in the Christian Science Monitor. As Jim notes, there is no attempt to try to find experts to comment on the piece.

I was listening to a most enjoyable (but far too short) programme from BBC World Service the other day on the Hitler Diaries, Witness: The Hitler Diaries Hoax (podcast version here).  In a day before the internet and blogging (1983), it took the media about a week to realize that they had been sold a hoax.  This story has now been running for two months without any widespread recognition that they are fakes and with few serious attempts to consult experts.  It's pathetic.