The howlers we know about

From Regret the Error's round up of the year's 'best' newspaper flubs. It really ought to be required reading in journalism schools and for newspaper staffs, puts it all in perspective.

-Hmmm, why the UK?

We once again saw a high number of instances in which people with Middle Eastern-sounding names were mistakenly labeled terrorists. This primarily occurred in UK publications. There were several cases of mistaken photo identification, while others were outright false accusations. One of the worst saw Metro UK run a photo of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed and identify him as terror suspect Kahlid Sheikh Mohammed.

-What a professional tone

The Sentinel-Review (Woodstock, Ontario): In an article in Monday’s newspaper, there may have been a misperception about why a Woodstock man is going to Afghanistan on a voluntary mission. Kevin DeClark is going to Afghanistan to gain life experience to become a police officer when he returns, not to shoot guns and blow things up. The Sentinel-Review apologizes for any embarrassment this may have caused.

-Hopefully she asserts!

Slate: In the May 25 “Explainer,” Michelle Tsai asserted that an eight ball is about 10 lines of cocaine. While the size of a line depends on personal preference, most users would divide an eight ball into more than 25 lines.

-Sure, 'regret' 'implies' 'sorry'

New York Daily News: A HEADLINE in Monday’s Daily News, “He regrets his role in ‘postal’ vid,” implied that Richard Marino, the subject of a YouTube video, was sorry for an incident in December at a Brooklyn post office. Marino, in fact, is not sorry. The News regrets the error

-Kids remember the darndest things

It wasn’t the most catastrophic error, but it speaks to two larger issues, one good and one bad.

In early August, the state-owned Russian TV network Rossiya (RTR) used a rather striking image of a submarine to illustrate a story about a Russian voyage to the Arctic.

After the story aired, the image was then distributed by Reuters, which meant that it spread to news outlets in countries around the world. It was also used by NBC Nightly News.

Then, days later, reports emerged that RTR’s image was in fact taken from the hit film Titanic.

So who was the first to discover this? Another media outlet? A submarine expert?

A 13-year-old boy in Finland.

“I was looking at the photo of the Russian sub expedition and I noticed immediately that there was something familiar about the picture,” Waltteri Seretin, the boy told a Finnish paper. “I checked it with my DVD and there it was right there in the beginning of the movie: exactly the same image of the submersibles approaching the ship.”

-Right-wing copy editors, I and II

Los Angeles Times: Mexico City newspaper: An article in Wednesday’s Calendar section about an English-language newspaper in Mexico City referred to the many U.S. ex-patriots who live there. It should have said expatriates.

The New York Times: A caption on Saturday with a picture showing a Pakistani man on his bicycle carrying a painting of his son, who he says was abducted by Pakistani intelligence agents in 2001, misspelled the name of the Pakistani capital. It is Islamabad, not Islambad.

-Those crazy Brits and their class obsession

Sunday Times (UK): An article about Lord Lambton (“Lord Louche, sex king of Chiantishire”, News Review, January 7) falsely stated that his son Ned (now Lord Durham) and daughter Catherine held a party at Lord Lambton’s villa, Cetinale, in 1997, which degenerated into such an orgy that Lord Lambton banned them from Cetinale for years. In fact, Lord Durham does not have a sister called Catherine (that is the name of his former wife), there has not been any orgiastic party of any kind and Lord Lambton did not ban him (or Catherine) from Cetinale at all. We apologise sincerely to Lord Durham for the hurt and embarrassment caused.


Tap-dancing hard

Daily Telegraph (UK): APOLOGY: In Friday’s article on Liz Hurley’s wedding it was wrongly stated that the actress is holding a pheasant shoot on the Sunday after the ceremony. Game shooting is of course illegal on Sundays and the pheasant season ended on Feb 1. We apologise for the error and accept that if any shooting is to be done it will be by the paparazzi, who have no season and do not observe the Sabbath.

-How the heck did these guys ever get an empire?

The Daily Express (UK):
ON April 3 we published an article entitled “The hangers-on who are dragging Prince Harry into the gutter” which was accompanied by a photograph of a young woman we identified as Annabel Ritchie. We now accept that the young woman photographed was not Annabel Ritchie. We also accept that Annabel Ritchie is not part of any so called “hangers-on”. We apologise unreservedly to Annabel Ritchie for what we published about her.

Sure, blame the copy editor

Portland Press Herald: A story on Page B4 on Wednesday about foraging for edible mushrooms contained a photo of amanita muscaria, which is a poisonous and hallucinogenic mushroom. It was a copy editor’s error.

The Times is so thorough

The New York Times: A caption on June 8, 1944, with a photograph of Army officers at mess on the Pacific front, misspelled the given name of the first officer seated at the left side of the table. He was Col. Girard B. Troland of New London, Conn. – not Gerand. The error was called to the attention of the editors by his grandson yesterday.

Good use of archives

The New York Times: An obituary on July 21 of Shirley Slesinger Lasswell, who marketed memorabilia and toys based on A. A. Milne’s children’s books about Winnie the Pooh, misspelled the name of the department store that agreed to let her set up Pooh Corners for children. It is Neiman Marcus, not Nieman Marcus. (The Times has misspelled the company’s name in at least 195 articles since 1930.)

Good transition

The Intelligencer Journal: A photograph accompanying a story about Teen Challenge in Saturday’s Intelligencer Journal incorrectly identified the subject, who is the Rev. James Santiago. The story included an incorrect identification of Santiago’s wife, Pam. Also, Santiago was addicted to crack cocaine for 12 years.


What the heck is going on down there?!

A letter published in the Sydney Morning Herald: David Marr unfortunately misquoted me in “A fallen leader of faith” (August 4-5). I actually said that I endured the naked beatings, paternal bum caresses etc from Frank Houston, not enjoyed them. I can assure readers that the experience wasn’t pleasurable but painful, both at the time and for some years later. Peter Laughton Carrara (Qld)

Ha!

Austin American-Statesman: A Newsmakers item on Page A2 Sunday incorrectly attributed a quote to the Rev. Al Sharpton. The item should have said that nationally syndicated radio host Don Imus described Rutgers’ women’s basketball players as “nappy-headed hos” during a segment of his show Wednesday.

Canadians think leaving Detroit is like dying

Toronto Star: A Nov. 19 article about a new study indicating that Detroit is the most dangerous U.S. city incorrectly stated that Detroit has seen nearly one million people killed since 1950. In fact, that number represents the overall decline in Detroit’s population since 1950, not the number of people killed. The Star regrets the error.

Well-worded correction

Newsday: A story Friday about Iona basketball coach Jeff Ruland’s past hardships should not have included a reference to a “battle for sobriety.” He has faced the loss of his father at age 9 and an NBA career shortened by injuries, but his sobriety has not been questioned.

Whatever

The NYTimes: An article in The Arts on Tuesday about the most popular movies of 2006 and others that did not do as well at the box office referred incorrectly to two languages spoken in ”Babel,” one of the films with subtitles that did not draw big crowds. They are Spanish and Berber, not ”Mexican” and ”Moroccan.’”