Plagiarizing executive speaker resigns in shame

Philippine businessman Manuel Pangilinan said he had some speechwriting help for his recent commencement address, but in the end he took responsibility for some passages borrowed without attribution from President Obama, J.K. Rowling and Oprah Winfrey.

And he promptly resigned from his prestigious post at Ateneo de Manila University.

Based on comparisons between Pangilinan’s remarks and the remarks of famous speakers, it appears he had no choice.

Speechwriters and speakers, let’s be careful out there.

(Thanks to VSOTD’s Pacific Rim correspondent Lorne Christensen for the tip.)