This is a new one. A writer for the San Antonio Express-News interviewed a couple for a story about “the secret to a happy marriage” and then filed the piece last summer. It was held until recently and, unfortunately, the couple died in the interim. The story didn’t note that fact. The paper decided to run a correction to inform readers. Fortunately, it appears the couple’s daughter wasn’t upset by the story:
Nell and Wallace Crain, a couple who were featured in a Page 1A story and photo on “the secret to a happy marriage,” died between the writing of the story last summer and its publication in the San Antonio Express-News on Monday. The deaths were not mentioned in the report.
The Express-News apologizes to family and friends of the couple, and to our readers, for the egregious omission.
J. Michael Parker, who wrote the story after spotting and interviewing the Crains at North Star Mall last June, said he learned of their deaths Monday via an e-mail from a Crain family friend. The friend put Parker in touch with Cheryl Crain Sanders, the couple’s daughter, who was gracious in an e-mail to the reporter:
“Thank you for including my parents as an example of ‘love until death.’ The article was thoughtful and well written. … Your article, while bittersweet to me, will be a great reminder to our family of their love and commitment.”
The couple’s daughter said Wallace Crain died the day before Thanksgiving last year and Nell Crain died Dec. 9. They had been married for 67 years.
Parker explained that he turned in his story to Express-News religion editor Arthur Santana late last summer. Santana said he edited the story, but essentially put it on hold until after the holidays. Two weeks ago, he gave the story back to Parker for updating. However, while he re-interviewed two other couples featured in the story, Parker did not seek new input from the Crains.
“I didn’t feel like Mr. Crain’s comments needed updating,” Parker said. “… They were such a sweet couple. They were what really made the story a story.”
7 Comments
The E-N is yet another paper that has sacrificed quality on the altar of visuals. The family is not upset, so it appears the paper will have an excuse to keep stumbling down the wrong path.
Oh please! It’s absurd to attribute a horrid mistake (oh wait — on the part of a CONTENT producer, not a visual staffer) to a paper’s visual philosophy.
You can say please all you want, but Journalism 101 would lead anyone to contact these people to find out if anything had changed. A cognizant editor, reporter or copy desk probably could even Google the information.
There’s a reason why those things don’t happen anymore, and that reason is the obsession with visuals. I remember checking facts routinely. That all came to a screeching halt when we instead had to worry about which rule line the managing editor wanted and how many picas it should be from the copy.
If anything is absurd, it’s what today’s pseudoeditors consider to be important. BTW, Mr. Parker has been forced into retirement, according to Poynter. I bet he wishes an editor would have had his back on this one. Now it’s too late.
Wenalway is a nut job who has been banned from more sites than his one-track mind can remember. Ignore him.
Nice intelligent argument there, bigyaz. For all who want to hear more of bigyaz’s intelligence, his IP is listed under the Seattle Times. They must be hiring some real winners at that paper.
In the future, try to stay on the issue here, bigyaz. It’s about mistakes and how newspapers enable them. You may consider that nutty, but you’re likely one of the many underperformers in today’s newsrooms. Your comments here show you don’t have much thinking ability.
We will surely miss the the troll comments from Robert Knilands (Wenalway) when his proofreading job is outsourced to the Philippines.
Just as we’ll miss the comments of dozens of anonymous, useless designers who will have long been relieved of their duties by the time that happens.