Wikipedia vandal quits job

In the wake of the John Seigenthaler Wikipedia scandal, the question is: what is the price to pay for being a Wikipedia vandal?

Some might say that a good old-fashioned turn in court as a libel defendant might have been appropriate for Brian Chase. According to The New York Times , Chase admitted he is the perpetrator (registration required) of the false Wikipedia article that linked Seigenthaler to the assassinations of John F. Kennedy and Robert Kennedy.

But Chase, who confessed to Seigenthaler after discovering that the media and Wikipedia Watch founder Daniel Brandt were hot on his tail, doesn't face a libel suit. That's mostly because Seigenthaler, a distinguished journalist, said he has no plans to sue.

Instead, Chase apparently felt his involvement in a prank--which inadvertently became a fairly significant brouhaha on the Internet because it exposed some flaws in Wikipedia's accountability--was destined to become a distraction at work. So, according to The Times, he quit his job.

Apparently, Seigenthaler didn't want Chase to suffer that fate and tried to get his employer to take him back. No word yet on whether Chase is collecting unemployment or if he's back on the payroll.