Running OOPS! thread

Only one paper I've worked for was confident enough to play it light with a correction now and then, and it humanized the connection with the readers at times. Another paper put on the funeral tones every time it fucked up, going so far as front page columns in which the editor apologized over and over for "not doing our jobs," and for "losing your trust." That editor was a not much of a leader, and those apology columns demoralized the newsroom and widened the gap with the readers.

Mistakes happen. You apologize (or state regrets) for the egregious ones, and all the smaller ones you correct responsibly and move on. The right approach to handling corrections actually helps a newsroom be more persistent at not making them. And that includes the occasional light-hearted correction. If nothing else, it shows that newsroom management has confidence in its ability to handle anything on a variety of levels.

 

Still one of my favorites:

A Tampa Bay Times reporter not strong in the ways of the force (or Star Wars lore) quoted the event’s moderator, Croix Provence, as asking: “Are you ready to find love in all the wrong places?” What Provence actually said was: “Are you ready to find love in Alderaan places?” She was referring to Princess Leia Organa’s home world, which appeared briefly in the 1977 film. Regret the error, we do.

Tampa Bay Times issues funny ‘Star Wars’ correction | The Sideshow - Yahoo News

 

Aren't the Japanese supposed to be smarter than us?

Wait, aren't they more technologically advanced than us too? Why are they still printing newspapers?!

 

A somewhat sheltered copy editor at my college paper changed "bong" to "bomb" in an entertainment page story about a Carrot Top show.

 

Ha! At my college paper, most of us probably would have changed "bomb" to "bong."

And while on the subject, I received an email the other day from a typo-prone co-worker indicating that a mutual friend of ours soon will be indicted into a hall of fame. I've seen that one quite often over the years.

 

They are smarter than us, and more technologically advanced. That's why the Japanese didn't make the mistake.

LOOK: Chicago Bears win Stanley Cup according to Korean newspaper - CBSSports.com

 

Looks like I forgot to proof my post. I knew it was Korea.

 

This got posted by a friend on Twitter today:

 

That's unfortunate

 

He had it coming.

 

Chuck Finley can relate.