'Stay classy’: Boston.com makes 'hysterical correction' to story after Boehner 'joke' backfires

A bartender at Wetherington Country Club in West Chester, Ohio, has been arrested for threatening to kill Speaker of the House John Boehner, possibly by poisoning his drink.

Boston.com, a site owned by the Boston Globe, carried this snarky analysis:

Would Anyone Have Noticed if Bartender Succeeded in Poisoning John Boehner? http://t.co/pxHuCGs2OK pic.twitter.com/qhNG66sah0

— Boston.com (@BostonDotCom) January 14, 2015

The original “joke” was that Boehner’s “pickled liver” would have stopped the poison:

Boston Globe thinks John Boehner's "pickled liver" would have filtered out poison attack: http://t.co/ozpJXgVrw6

— Matthew Sheffield (@mattsheffield) January 14, 2015

https://twitter.com/Roger247/status/555343660682727424

https://twitter.com/Roger247/status/555344675612024832
https://twitter.com/sue_oconnell1/status/555351129241178112

@dbernstein @BostonDotCom why did you write this @vpaulalvarez?

— McCallister Crowley (@EstelleSweaty) January 14, 2015

@BostonDotCom Truly a pathetic headline/tweet. Would anyone notice if your rag went out of business?

— Steve Henry (@burtreynolds517) January 14, 2015

@BostonDotCom stay classy

— Eric Darbe (@EricDarbe) January 14, 2015

@BostonDotCom you think that's funny? I guess calling you journalists is a joke too

— Lisa (@kittywhisperer7) January 14, 2015

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But wait…

https://twitter.com/Coondawg68/status/555375955464966144

After the “joke” was called out, Boston.com made an “editor’s note” at the bottom of the story, and a reference to Boehner’s “pickled liver” is now gone. The section wondering if “anybody would have noticed” if the bartender had successfully poisoned the Speaker remains (for now):

@jimgeraghty did you see? http://t.co/DwOihUmzcT "editor's note" at the end. Quite the weasely correction.

— Sarah Rumpf (@rumpfshaker) January 14, 2015

https://twitter.com/Coondawg68/status/555404940886441984
https://twitter.com/Coondawg68/status/555371700599422976
https://twitter.com/Coondawg68/status/555425357407731712

Editor’s note: This post has been updated to include an additional tweet.