As reported earlier, CNN ran a story today claiming that “some Rubio advisers” are telling him that he should drop out of the race right away, before Florida. Also as noted previously, Rubio Communications Director Alex Conant went on CNN to dispute that report, calling it fiction.

After the whole thing went down, CNN ran another report and confirmed that their original story was based on a single anonymous source.

By the way? They never bothered to ask the actual campaign to comment before running the story.

This matters on several levels of course, but one in particular stands out. From Joe Pounder:

On CNN now, @jamiegangel says her story is based on one "very knowledgeable source." She now has multiple sources saying it's made-up.

— Joe Pounder (@PounderFile) March 8, 2016

Multiple sources are telling CNN that the story is inaccurate. But they are standing by their one anonymous source. Moreover, reporter Jamie Gangel’s on-air follow-up essentially scoffed at the idea that the story was inaccurate and smirked at Rubio’s assertion that he is going nowhere.

But it gets better.

So @CNN just canceled my previously scheduled interview on @andersoncooper tonight

— Alex Conant (@AlexConant) March 8, 2016

Dude, seriously? And you think we’re done now, but we’re not. Look at the evolution of the headline:

The CNN Rubio fictional story changed 4 times just in the last hour! #CNNHeadlines pic.twitter.com/1o29aOVdrX

— Benny Polatseck (@BPolatseck) March 8, 2016

A story based on a single anonymous source about a major shift in a major campaign, reported without giving the campaign the opportunity to deny, refute, or even quibble with the assertion, later refuted by the actual candidate and multiple on the record sources, and a mighty morphin’ headline.

Great work, CNN.