In an April 24 story on ESPN.com about NFL draft prospect Marcus Dixon, a scouting breakdown provided by ESPN’s Scouts Inc., erroneously reported that Dixon had been charged with criminal damage and disorderly conduct in August of 2007. Dixon was not involved in any such an incident and was never charged with those crimes. Link
From journalism.co.uk:
The sourcing and fact checking process for stories on the BBC News website must be addressed by management, the BBC trust Editorial Standards Committee has recommended.
The committee made the suggestions as part of its response to a complaint about an article on the site, which pointed to inaccuracies in the report on Congressman Joseph [...]
In an April 8 “DVD Extras,” Mark Harris noted that in addition to being racist and sexist, gangster movies of the 1930s were also homophobic. Harris cited as evidence a line from the James Cagney picture Lady Killer, in which cops threaten Cagney by saying, “We’ll run you in as a fag, and that’ll mean [...]
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation airs a wonderful show called Media Watch. It operates with the slogan, “Everyone loves it until they’re on it.” Why, that’s good enough to steal for this site. But that would be unwise because Media Watch is very good at exposing plagiarists.
In early March, it aired a scathing seven minute report [...]
In the article “Is Briana Waters a terrorist?,” published Mar. 27, the subhead stated that “U.S. attorneys exploited post-9/11 counterterrorism laws to pursue and prosecute an environmental activist.” In fact, while tougher post-9/11 policies on eco-terror played a role in the Waters case, no new laws were used in her prosecution.
Upon review, we [...]
Due to an editing error, Cary Tennis’ Since You Asked column from March 26 contained a letter from a reader who had not authorized it to be published. The column has been removed from the site. Salon regrets the error. Link
The March 21 article “The Funny Thing About Black Men in Dresses” incorrectly identified the actress who played Virginiaca’s stepdaughter in a “Saturday Night Live” sketch as Natalie Portman. The role was played by Ellen Page. The article has been corrected. Link
A March 14 story about spring break incorrectly stated that Fort Lauderdale had 7.8 billion visitors in 2001. The correct figure was 7.8 million. Link
A story published March 13 about the fallout after Geraldine Ferraro said Barack Obama’s success was due to his colour quoted Hillary Clinton as saying Ferraro’s comments were “ridiculous” and “wrong-headed.” In fact, Obama described Ferraro’s remarks that way. Link
In the March 14 story “The Rise of the Superclass,” a sentence has been clarified. The line now reads: “Yet, to be fair, people are among the things that Rothkopf has to offer his clients, specifically his knowledge of and acquaintances among the very superclass he celebrates and scolds.” Link
The website of German newspaper Der Spiegel recently issued a retraction for an article that claimed IKEA had a habit of naming inexpensive items after Danish towns. (High end items were named after Swedish, Finnish and Norwegian towns.) As the retraction explains, the story was based on a report in a Danish newspaper that turned [...]
Jack Shafer brings word of another incident of plagiarism at the New York Times:
New York Times Standards Editor Craig Whitney apologized to Manhattan Media this afternoon after today’s (March 11) Times lifted from a Manhattan Media story published on the Web and e-mailed to a media list yesterday.
The lift, taken from Manhattan Media’s City [...]
Over the past couple of weeks, Regret readers have been debating the necessity of this NPR apology:
In our newscast at 9:30 a.m. ET on Feb. 14, the phrase “dark continent” was used by one of our newscasters in reference to President Bush’s trip to Africa. This was totally inappropriate and offensive, and we apologize. [...]
February 18, 2008 – 8:00 am
In the Feb. 13 “Human Nature,” William Saletan said that research in mice indicated that the embryoblast-trophoblast distinction began at the two-cell stage. As evidence, the article linked to a 2006 paper in Science. That paper has since been retracted due to “falsified or fabricated images” by one co-author. However, according to subsequent communication with [...]
February 8, 2008 – 8:00 am
The story was corrected, but the headline’s a bit of a problem. Thanks, Jeff!
February 3, 2008 – 8:00 am
In the Jan. 29 “Other Magazines,” Noreen Malone incorrectly stated that the total amount spent on the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts was $5 billion. The actual figure is $500 billion. Link
January 25, 2008 – 8:00 am
A Jan. 24 Broadsheet post on the high rate of teen Latina suicide attempts had two references to “suicide rate” that should have read “suicide attempt rate.” Additionally, the headline incorrectly stated that “Latina teens have highest suicide rate.” The story has been corrected. Link
January 22, 2008 – 8:00 am
For a brief period on Jan. 20, a headline in the msnbc.com top headlines feed incorrectly stated that the New York Giants would face the Green Bay Packers in the Super Bowl. The Giants will play the New England Patriots. Link
January 21, 2008 – 8:00 am
In a Jan. 11 “Trailhead” entry, Christopher Beam incorrectly referred to Hillary Clinton’s economic stimulus package as a $70 program. It would cost $70 billion. Link
January 11, 2008 – 8:00 am
The Consumerist noticed a rather vulgar-yet-amusing post on Wil Wheaton’s blog that details the former Star Trek star’s distaste for AAA insurance. After seeing Consumerist’s post (4th item), Wheaton contacted the blog to clarify things. The Consumerist post:
Wil Wheaton (of Star Trek: The Next Generation) would like you to know that he does not and [...]
January 4, 2008 – 8:00 am
A story published Jan. 2 about private animal shelters in Ottawa said the College of Veterinarians of Ontario restricts vets from offering discounts to people who are trying to care for marginalized animals. In fact, the organization does not impose such restrictions.
A story published Jan. 2 about Canadian university groups that raised criticisms of blood [...]
January 4, 2008 – 8:00 am
Cary Tennis’ “Since You Asked” column of Jan. 2, 2008, implied that Eli’s Rehab Report was a publication aimed at drug rehabs. It is not. It is a publication aimed at physical therapy rehabs. The column has been corrected to reflect this. Salon regrets the errror. Link
Yeah, there’s an extra “r” in the last [...]
January 4, 2008 – 8:00 am
A political endorsement attributed to sex columnist Dan Savage appeared in the Jan. 3 story “Let the Voting Begin.” Unfortunately, a staffer mistakenly solicited an endorsement from a different Dan Savage, and Salon published that endorsement with an erroneous attribution to the columnist. We have removed the endorsement. Salon regrets the error. Link
Gawker has more [...]
January 3, 2008 – 9:10 am
Public Eye, a blog launched by CBS News in September 2005 with the stated goal of bringing “transparency to the editorial operations of CBS News — transparency that is unprecedented for broadcast and online journalism,” died this week due to the lack of “a sustainable business model.” It was roughly 28 months old.
CBS Interactive cut [...]
January 2, 2008 – 8:00 am
From the AP:
Arkansas star Darren McFadden said Saturday he fully expects to play in the Cotton Bowl after a television report raised questions about his eligibility. Arkansas television station KARK has since backed off the report, apologizing to McFadden and his family.
“It’s something that’s uncalled for — people not getting their facts straight,” said [...]
