The conversation here is hypothetical, but the quotes from Tomase all come from his "apology" in the Herald today. Unlike Tomase's reports on the Pats, the quotes are all 100% accurate:

Barstool Sports: Tell us, John, where did you first hear the lie about the Patriots taping the Rams walkthrough?
John Tomase: Late in the 2006 season...It was just a rumor.... He had heard it from a friend of a friend.

BSS: Sounds good enough. So you printed an unsubstaniated rumor?
JT: Istill needed more....Two days before the Super Bowl, I finally believed I had it nailed that the Pats had indeed taped that walkthrough.

BSS: So you saw the tape?
JT: There was no tape made of the walkthrough.

BSS: Oookaaaay. Who was your source this time? A friend of a friend of a friend?
JT: From some people I trusted.

BSS: So that was enough to go on? To run this story on Super Bowl Saturday?
JT: I never expected to be running this story during Super Bowl week.

BSS: So you feel horrible about dropping this particular turd into the Patriots punchbowl as they were on the verge of making history, right?
JT: I have no regrets over going to print the day before the Super Bowl.

BSS: Because you had solid evidence right? Someone told you they themselves took the video. Or had seen the video. I mean, you wouldn't write the story on just a rumor right?
JT: One that I trust said he had been told the walkthrough was taped. A second said he had been told the same thing, but neither had seen a tape.

BSS: Soooo... two guys tell you they heard about a tape. And you figured that was good enough to run the story? Two guys have told me they heard you like to molest animals. Should I print that?
JT: This is the exact point at which the story broke down

BSS: Why couldn't the story wait until you could confirm it? Why would you scramble to publish something as true before you checked it out just to make a splash on Super Bowl weekend? Are you really that much of an attention whore?
JT: Caught up in the moment, I was excited to break a big story.

BSS: So just like we said at the time, you wrote it just to get a reaction and make a name for yourself.
JT: This isn't just any story... Patriots fans howled... the story mushroomed on Super Bowl Sunday.

BSS: I get it. "Mission accomplished." And you weren't afraid to publish something that was dead wrong?
JT: Fearing you're wrong and knowing it are two different things.

BSS: What about reportss that you're a big, fat tub o' goo who gets 90% of his nutrition from the press room fryolater?
JT: A pit settled in my stomach. That pit would become my constant companion for the next three months.

BSS: What do you think of your credibility with the Patriots, the fans and your paper after you printed lies to further your career.
JT: There's no coming back from this.