by Jim Kouri - NEW YORK -- Fox News and the NY Times reports that a military source close to the investigation that Pvt. Scott Thomas Beauchamp -- author of the much-disputed "Shock Troops" article in the New Republic's July 23 issue as well as two previous "Baghdad Diarist" columns -- signed a sworn statement admitting that all three articles he published in were exaggerations and falsehoods -- fabrications containing only "a smidgen of truth," in the words of a source.

Separately, the news media received this statement from Major Steven F. Lamb, the deputy Public Affairs Officer for Multi National Division-Baghdad:

"An investigation has been completed and the allegations made by PVT Beauchamp were found to be false. His platoon and company were interviewed and no one could substantiate the claims."

According to the military source, Beauchamp's recantation was volunteered on the first day of the military's investigation. So as Beauchamp was in Iraq signing an affidavit denying the truth of his stories, the New Republic was publishing a statement from him on its website on July 26, in which Beauchamp said, "I'm willing to stand by the entirety of my articles for the New Republic using my real name."

According to Fox News, the magazine's editors admitted on Aug. 2 that one of the anecdotes Beauchamp stood by in its entirety -- meant to illustrate the "morally and emotionally distorting effects of war" -- took place (if at all) in Kuwait, before his tour of duty in Iraq began, and not, as he had claimed, in his mess hall in Iraq.

That event was the public humiliation by Beauchamp and a comrade of a woman whose face had been "melted" by an IED.