Regret the Error » Wire service

Lose a word, lose the meaning

Craig Silverman — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 12:00:08 +0000

In a story Dec. 14 about military sexual abuse, The Associated Press reported erroneously that an attorney representing military members and veterans said she was surprised by the dismissal of a lawsuit. Susan Burke said she was “not surprised.” Link

The reporter, not the president

Craig Silverman — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 12:00:31 +0000

In a Dec. 11 story, The Associated Press erroneously quoted President Obama as saying: “There are going to be people who say, `This is the socialist Obama and he’s come out of the closet.’” That remark was made by 60 Minutes correspondent Steve Kroft, not the president. Link

A better team after all

Craig Silverman — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 12:00:05 +0000

In a Dec. 4 hometown lead on the NFL game between Carolina and Tampa Bay, The Associated Press erroneously quoted Buccaneers coach Raheem Morris following a 38-19 loss. The coach, referring to what Morris described as poor play by his team, said: “I can take getting beat by a better football team, which they were.” Morris did not say, “I wish they were.” Link

AP mistakes Christopher Walken impersonator for real thing*

Craig Silverman — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 11:30:53 +0000

A retraction from AP:

The Associated Press has withdrawn the 12th and 13th Ld-Writethrus of its story about the Natalie Wood investigation. The story quoted Christopher Walken telling Washington, D.C. sports talk radio station ESPN980 about his recollections from the night that Wood died. The station now says that it was a hoax involving a station employee who was impersonating Walken.

That employee impersonates Walken on a weekly basis*, meaning there was no intent to deceive. A report from TBD offers some background:

Marc Sterne, who goes by Nigel on ESPN 980′s The Tony Kornheiser Show, impersonates Christopher Walken on the program every week. When he did so this morning, and made up details about Natalie Wood’s drowning death in 1981 (at which the real Walken was present), an Associated Press reporter believed what he was hearing and the wire service published a report about it.

*Correction November 21, 2011: This post originally misspelled Walken as Walkin. Twice. A very lazy error on my part. Thanks to Rogerogreen for spotting the mistakes.

Addiction, not addition

Craig Silverman — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 12:00:52 +0000

In a Nov. 3 story about a Texas judge who was secretly videoed beating his teenage daughter, The Associated Press misquoted the judge’s ex-wife. She blamed the violence on his addiction not his addition. Link

AP corrects context of quote from Julian Assange’s attorney

Craig Silverman — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 11:00:20 +0000

In stories July 12 and Oct. 27 on the extradition case against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange over claims of sexual misconduct, The Associated Press reported that his attorney, Ben Emmerson, said in July that the women involved in the case may have found sex with his client “disrespectful, discourteous or disturbing,” but added that it had been entirely consensual. The AP’s phrasing was intended to convey that Emerson meant the women may or may not have found sex with Assange disrespectful, discourteous or disturbing.
At the July appeal hearing, Emerson said: “Nothing I say should be taken as denigrating the complainant, the genuineness of their feelings of regret, to trivialise their experience or to challenge whether they felt Assange’s conduct was disrespectful, discourteous, disturbing or even pushing at the boundaries of what they felt comfortable with.” Link

Reuters withdraws story due to similarities with Guardian piece

Craig Silverman — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 02:13:21 +0000

An advisory issued by Reuters on Friday:

Please be advised that the Oct 27 Moscow story headlined “Chechen teen diary a bitter tale of bombs and survival” has been withdrawn because, though it included original reporting, it is too similar to a piece already published by The Guardian on the same subject to be appropriate for publication. No substitute story will be issued.

The similarities were first written about by Dylan Byers in Adweek, when he pointed to a tweet from the Guardian writer:

Byers’ piece noted the many similarities in language between the two pieces, and he also pointed out that both writers had interviewed the subject of their respective articles.

So, aside from withdrawing the story, does Reuters plan to explain what action it will take as a result of the copying? And while were talking about Reuters, I keep wondering when will it make it so that its online corrections page points to real corrections, rather than broken links.

Hat tip to Poynter for drawing my attention to this story.

Pee-wee, not Pee Wee

Craig Silverman — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 13:00:35 +0000

In an Oct. 18 story about the Scream Awards, The Associated Press misspelled the first name of Pee-wee Herman as Pee Wee. Link

“Aging pop star” not hauled off stage by police

Craig Silverman — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 11:00:49 +0000

The original version of this story erroneously reported that singer Stevie B was hauled off stage during a concert at the MassMutual Center in Springfield, Mass., and arrested for failure to pay child support. Police said he was arrested after his show, as he was leaving the arena.

The original article saying he was arrested while on stage is no longer online. But it still shows up in the Republican’s archives with a headline and excerpt:

“Aging pop star.” Ouch. That bit was removed from the new version, which is where you can find the above correction.

This is also a notable correction because AP picked up the original report. So it too issued a correction:

In stories Oct. 2 and Oct. 3, The Associated Press, relying on information from The Republican newspaper of Springfield, Mass., erroneously reported that singer Stevie B was hauled off stage during a concert at the MassMutual Center in Springfield, Mass., and arrested for failure to pay child support. Police said he was arrested after his show, as he was leaving the arena.

Rest is fine

Craig Silverman — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 11:00:08 +0000

In a Sept. 8 story about a South African girl with progeria, The Associated Press erroneously reported that Ontlametse Phalatse is the first black child diagnosed with the aging disease. The Progeria Research Foundation said it is aware of two other cases of black children diagnosed with progeria who have died. The AP also erroneously reported that two South Africans have been diagnosed with the disease. The foundation said more than two South Africans have been diagnosed and that two, including Phalatse, remain alive. The AP also erroneously reported that the number of children diagnosed has risen from 48 to 80 worldwide. The foundation said the number has increased by 48 percent from 54 to 80. Link

Source of error

Craig Silverman — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 11:00:42 +0000

In an Aug. 30 story about agriculture damage from Hurricane Irene, relying on information from the Maryland Department of Agriculture on poultry deaths, The Associated Press reported erroneously that about 30,000 birds had been killed in that state. The department now says no birds died as a result of the storm. On Thursday, a department spokeswoman said that a mix-up during a conference call resulted in it releasing the false numbers. Link

Reuters gets lingo wrong in Jersey Shore story

Craig Silverman — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 13:00:22 +0000

Reuters recently carried a report about Abercrombie & Fitch offering money to Jersey Shore star The Situation to stop wearing its clothes. Here’s how the report began:

Teen clothing retailer Abercrombie & Fitch Co (ANF.N) has offered money to get away from what it sees as an undesirable Situation.

The preppy retailer has offered to pay cast members from MTV’s popular show “Jersey Shore” to stop wearing its clothes, it said in a news release late on Tuesday.

The company is “deeply concerned” that Michael “The Situation” Sorrentino “could cause significant damage” to the brand’s “aspirational nature.”

MTV, a unit of Viacom Inc (VIAb.N), released a statement in response that called Abercrombie’s offer “a clever PR stunt.”

The story also noted Abercrombie & Fitch previously embraced the show:

The offer could be considered an abrupt about-face for a company that previously sold T-shirts emblazoned with the wording “The Fitchuation,” and “G.T.L.” — the show’s common reference to a pre-party routine of “gym, tan laundry.”

Except the original text of the story reported that G.T.L. stood for “gym, tan lunch.” The story now carries this correction at top:

Corrects paragraph seven to say G.T.L. stands for “gym, tan laundry,” not “gym, tan lunch”

Thanks, Daniel!

AP retracts photo of car-crushing mayor*

Craig Silverman — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 11:00:31 +0000

A notice from the AP:

The mayor of Vilnius acknowledged Tuesday distributing a deliberately altered picture to The Associated Press and other news organizations intended to dramatize his anti-parking campaign, an image that then was published in newspapers around world.
The AP withdrew the photo, transmitted on Aug. 3, and notified its customers of the breech Monday, as soon as it discovered the deception.
Vilnius Mayor Arturas Zuokas’ office sent a photo showing him riding an armored personnel carrier, from which two other people were erased.
An accompanying video of the public relations stunt, also distributed by the mayor’s office, clearly shows the two other men.
The Associated Press policy is not to accept any photos that are altered. In this case the mayor’s office did not inform the AP that it has doctored the photo. The AP has since removed the photo from its systems and archives.
“It is completely inappropriate to provide photoshopped images to media companies as it compromises our credibility and misleads our readers,” said Santiago Lyon, AP’s director of photography.
According to AP’s electronic photo policy, only retouching to eliminate dust and scratches is permitted …

AP also distributed this photographic comparison of the original and the doctored image:

And here’s a related correction from the Waterloo Region Record in Canada. It published the doctored photo:

The Associated Press distributed a picture showing the mayor of Vilnus, Lithuania, riding in an armoured personnel carrier and flattening a car on a downtown street to dramatize an anti-parking campaign. Upon learning the photo had been doctored by the mayors office to remove other people on the tank, the news service withdrew the photo from its system and archives. The Record ran this photo in the news section on August 4.

*Correction August 22, 2011: The original headline on this post was “AP retracts photo of car crushing mayor.” As pointed out in an error report on MediaBugs, the lack of hyphen “makes it sound as though a car is crushing the mayor, not the other way around.” True. I added the hyphen, and I regret the error.

Bit of a rush job?

Craig Silverman — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 11:00:12 +0000

In Today in History for Aug. 11, the Thought for Today omitted the name of the British poet who said, “Journalism is literature in a hurry.”
The poet was Matthew Arnold (1822-1888). Link

Updated: Worth reading: ‘French Suspect Articles in Le Monde Set Off Market Panic’

Craig Silverman — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 14:00:11 +0000

Misunderstandings between the French and visiting British vacationers are a traditional feature of summers in France. But did a British malentendu over another French summer staple — a fictional series of articles in Le Monde — contribute to a mysterious sell-off in French bank stocks last week?

That is the question that French politicians, business leaders and journalists — at least those who are left in Paris during the dog days of August — are asking, as they struggle to explain the plunge, which was accompanied by concerns about the country’s ability to pay back its debts.

The series, “End of the Line for the Euro,” looked at how a collapse of the single currency might play out, against the backdrop of French presidential elections next year. While the 12-part story was clearly labeled as fiction, it named real banks, like Société Générale, whose shares plunged 15 percent last Wednesday, prompting the bank to deny speculation that it was in financial trouble.

As market participants and journalists searched for possible reasons, the trail seemed to lead to London. There, The Mail on Sunday, a tabloid newspaper, had published an article in which it said Société Générale was “on the brink of disaster.” Société Générale and an Italian bank, UniCredit, were in a “perilous” state, the paper added, citing “a senior government source.”

Last Tuesday, two days after the report appeared, The Mail retracted it, writing, “We now accept that this was not true and we unreservedly apologize to Société Générale for any embarrassment caused.”

Readers of the fictional “End of the Line for the Euro” noticed that Société Générale and UniCredit were both named in the same passage in the series, in an imaginary conversation involving the hedge fund manager John Paulson, where he says that U.S. regulators have been raising concerns about the liquidity of the two banks …

As for The Mail on Sunday, a senior executive, who insisted that he not be identified because he is not an official spokesman, dismissed talk of a link to the series in Le Monde. Neither the paper’s reporters nor its sources had been aware of “End of the Line for the Euro,” the executive said.

—via “French Suspect Articles in Le Monde Set Off Market Panic”, a story in the New York Times. Here’s the relevant Mail apology.

Update August 18, 2011: Stinky Journalism reports that Agence France-Presse has retracted a report it published that linked the Le Monde fiction with stock market activity:

Agence France-Presse (AFP) retracted a story suggesting that French newspaper Le Monde was “the source of false information that has largely contributed to Société Générale’s stock market drop,” the New York Times reported.

In an e-mail to StinkyJorunalism AFP’s editor-in-chief Florence Biedermann confirmed that the AFP “killed a story linking Le Monde’s fiction series to Société Générale’s stock market drop.”

Biedermann noted that the retraction was issued 12 hours after the story was released on AFP’s French wire. “We explained to our clients that it established an erroneous link between LeMonde’s fiction, a Mail on Sunday’s article and Société Générale’sstock market drop,” Biedermann wrote. Biedermann noted that the AFP “asked our web clients to withdraw the story from their site” as well.