Recently, one of my clients was the victim of a drive-by writing. One gang of journalists basically drove over to wipe out someone they perceived was part of another gang, and my client got caught in the crossfire.

Aside from being appalled at the publication's laughably lax journalistic integrity, I was shocked by the weakness of the apology when they admitted, privately and not publicly, that they had obviously done wrong.

I, for the first time, after 14 years of listening with half an ear to countless numbers of chefs freak out about factually incorrect stories, realized what it feels like to have someone print an out-and-out lie about someone/something close to you. Let me tell you, it blows.

So, what to do?

The chef's first line of defense is to try to work with the writer/editor in the hopes that they take the high road and print a correction. That isn't always gonna happen. In my case, though the publication admitted they had done wrong, they chose to put it upon my client to comment on the wrongdoing rather than just man up and admit the folly of their ways.

The next line of defense is to find a trusted soul to listen to your story, over and over and over and over ... keep getting it out, keep working through it, keep wondering aloud what the hell kind of megalomaniacal blowhard is actually running the show at the publication. I recommend strong drink during this phase. 

Finally, realize that your winning in the end is more about you and their losing in the end is more about them than either of you will ever know. Your longstanding reputation and theirs, as I have found, speak volumes about the futures you will both have. 

There are plenty, and I mean stockpots-full, of great journalists doing great work who fact-check, verify, use an abundance of caution and otherwise do all the things I learned back in the Ernie Pyle School of Journalism. Stick with it, those journalists will find you.

This final step, really, is about taking the high road, not having the final say, resting in the knowledge that you are doing the best you can in your job, but that some people, well, not so much.

So, head down, get back to work, and really, I know this, you will win.