Plagiarism is a big issue in the academic and journalistic world ( indeed any subject that has to do with writing) and it is worthy of note that it does not mean simply copying a person's work to pass as your own. It can also mean failing to give proper credit where it is due.
This is the form of plagiarism that the Wild Goose Chase plagiarism is. It involves using the works of an author but instead of correctly citing them so due credit is given, the writer instead uses other sources either real or made up which is what Lee did in her blog post.
It is called a Wild Goose Chase because somebody aiming to verifying the information will not find the information where they were supposed to meaning that the writer had sent them on a wild goose chase.
The speaker is implying that there will be unpleasant consequences if one does not study the problem carefully, and they are trying to persuade you to do so to avoid unnecessary consequences.
