Tag Archives: newsweek

Lessons in geography etc.

October 22, 2009 – 8:00 am

newsweek1In “Underqualified for the Overrated” we incorrectly said that the Nobel Peace Prize is awarded in Stockholm. In fact, it is given in Oslo. We also said the Italian daily La Stampa is based in Rome. It’s based in Turin. NEWSWEEK REGRETS the errors. Link

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Rest is fine

September 25, 2009 – 8:00 am

newsweek1The article “Beware of Big Ideas: Newly nervous post-Soviet states crack down on Western schools” (Aug. 10 & 17) contained several errors. The article stated that the Kazakhstan Institute of Management, Economics and Strategic Research (known as KIMEP) recently laid off 30 professors. The correct number is 20. The article also stated that KIMEP spent $10 million on a new building this year. In fact, the building was completed last year. Finally, the name of the school’s vice president is Habib Rahman, not Khalib Rakhman, as stated in our article, and our reporters did not speak to him for the story. NEWSWEEK sincerely regrets the errors.

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All Supreme Court justices look alike

May 6, 2009 – 8:00 am

newsweek1A caption in the May 4 edition of Conventional Wisdom Watch misidentified the Supreme Court justice in the photograph. It was John Paul Stevens, not David Souter. NEWSWEEK regrets the error. Link

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Damn you, Jon Stewart

April 21, 2009 – 8:00 am

newsweek1A quotation on the perspectives page in the April 13 edition of NEWSWEEK incorrectly attributed an expletive to Peter Orszag, director of the Office of Management and Budget, during his recent appearance on “The Daily Show With Jon Stewart.” In fact, it was Stewart who uttered the swear word. We regret the error. Link

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Conventional wisdom was wrong

March 31, 2009 – 8:00 am

newsweek1In the March 30 issue, an item in the Conventional Wisdom Watch wrongly implied that Richard Holbrooke, the special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan in President Obama’s State Department, bore some culpability for the $165 million in bonuses awarded recently to AIG executives for their work over the past year. Although Holbrooke was a member of AIG’s board of directors from 2001 to 2008 and served on a committee that established guidelines for executive compensation, his tenure with that committee ended in 2005–several years before the controversial bonuses were established. Moreover, the full board was never briefed on the bonuses during the time Holbrooke served on it. NEWSWEEK regrets the error. Link

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Uninvited guests

July 1, 2008 – 8:00 am

In “Joining the ‘Out’ Club” (BELIEFWATCH, June 16), we said that the evangelical pastor Rick Warren had announced he was welcoming a group of gay fathers to his church on Father’s Day. In fact, Warren did not announce the visit of a group of gay fathers to his Saddleback Church on Father’s Day, nor did he initiate it. The group, which has ties to the gay-activist organization SoulForce, attended church at Saddleback on Father’s Day and met with members of the Saddleback staff the following day. Warren did not attend the meeting. NEWSWEEK regrets the error. Link

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Fuzzy numbers etc.

June 10, 2008 – 8:00 am

“Blog Books Go For Broke” (PERISCOPE, June 2) stated that a 2006 book by the creators of the DailyCandy Web site had sold approximately 11,000 copies, according to Nielsen BookScan. BookScan tracks only mainstream sales outlets and does not provide comprehensive industry figures; including sales through specialty outlets, the DailyCandy book has actually sold 44,337 copies. NEWSWEEK regrets the errors. Link

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Politics as usual

May 28, 2008 – 8:00 am

Periscope’s May 19 “Dignity Index” incorrectly stated that Rep. Vito Fossella had resigned from Congress following his arrest on drunken-driving charges and revelations of marital infidelity. In fact, Fossella remains in office. Link

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Editor’s Note

April 9, 2008 – 8:00 am

In “The World According To John McCain” (April 7), NEWSWEEK described a meeting at the 2006 Munich security conference in which Sen. John McCain allegedly erupted at the German foreign minister, whom McCain thought was being insufficiently tough on the brutal regime in Belarus. There are, however, conflicting versions of the episode, and we should have made that clear. Other people who were in the room at the time dispute the account, and several of those who were there, including those who recall a brief flare-up of anger from McCain (which the senator denies), believed the incident was minor, based on a misunderstanding caused by a translation problem, and was quickly cleared up. Senator McCain should have been given an opportunity to give his version of events in the original story, and we regret that the piece did not note the different recollections of the moment, including the denials that there was any display of anger. Link

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Support for one, none for the other

February 22, 2008 – 8:00 am

In “The Wrong Experience” (Feb. 11), Fareed Zakaria wrote that Hillary Clinton “won’t say” whether she supports an initiative, proposed by Henry Kissinger, George Shultz, William Perry and Sam Nunn, to reduce America’s nuclear arsenal. In fact, Senator Clinton has supported the initiative.

And:

Periscope’s Feb. 11 election quiz, “Which of Us Just Ran for President?” incorrectly referred to former U.S. senator Mike Gravel’s presidential candidacy in the past tense. In fact, Gravel is still actively pursuing the Democratic nomination. NEWSWEEK regrets the errors. Link to both

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Taliban, U.S. forces… whatever

January 31, 2008 – 8:00 am

The Dec. 31/Jan. 7 caption for a photo by Balazs Gardi accompanying the Periscope article “Alone, Afraid, in the Company of Men Dreaming of Death” incorrectly implied that the boy in the picture had been wounded by a Taliban suicide bomber. In fact, the child was injured by an airstrike from U.S. forces. NEWSWEEK regrets the error. Link

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Shuck and correct

January 24, 2008 – 8:00 am

An item in the Periscope section of the Jan. 21 issue mischaracterized New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo’s use of the phrase “shuck and jive” as a direct reference to the political style of Sen. Barack Obama. In fact, Cuomo, a Hillary Clinton supporter, was speaking in broad terms about how candidates interact with voters in Iowa and New Hampshire, according to a review of the transcript by The New York Times.

In “The Pilot vs. The preacher” (Jan. 14), we said that former John McCain political consultant Mike Murphy had once been a Navy pilot. In fact, he has never been a Navy pilot, nor has he ever served in the armed forces. NEWSWEEK regrets the errors. Link

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Attention journalists everywhere: James Dobson is not a minister

May 19, 2006 – 8:01 am

Our obsessive cataloging of corrections occasionally enables us to spot a pattern. Whether it’s the failure of newspapers to identify someone they initially misidentified in a photo, or the inability of newspapers to accurately report on, well, newspapers, we sometimes feel as though we’re listening to a broken record. Such was the case when we spotted this correction in the Washington Post:

A May 14 article about Sen. John McCain’s speech at Liberty University incorrectly referred to the chairman of Focus on the Family as the Rev. James Dobson. Dobson is not an ordained minister.

We knew we’d read that one before. (The GetReligion blog also felt a sense of déjà vu.) So we fired up Nexis, did a search for “James Dobson and correction,” and were less than shocked to turn up more than 20 similar corrections going back to 1989. What publication ran that 1989 correction, you ask? The Washington Post. GetReligion also spotted two recent Newsweek corrections that we have included below. So here they are in all their glory: The James Dobson Is Not A Reverend/Minister/Evangelical Corrections. Bow your heads and pray we never see another one.

Roll Call
May 11, 2006
In the May 10 edition of “Heard on the Hill,” James Dobson of Focus on the Family was misidentified as a reverend. He has a Ph.D. from the University of Southern California in the field of child development.

The San Diego Union-Tribune
April 27, 2006
A headline April 20 with a story about the 70th birthday of Dr. James Dobson misidentified him as an evangelist. A child psychologist and best-selling author, he is the founder and chairman of Focus on Family, a nonprofit Christian ministry that helps families.

Newsweek
Feb. 20, 2006
In the Feb. 13 article “God’s Green Soldiers,” we incorrectly identified James Dobson as a reverend. He in fact has a Ph.D. in child psychology and goes by Dr. Dobson. Newsweek regrets the [error].

Wall Street Journal
November 5, 2005
Correction of Oct 28 page-one article; James Dobson is psychologist and chairman of Focus on the Family

Sun-Sentinel
August 17, 2005
A July 12 column by Michael Mayo on Page 1B of the Local section, about the Broward schools SpongeBob video controversy, contained two errors. Activist James Dobson is not a reverend, and Dobson did not assert that the cartoon character SpongeBob SquarePants is gay.

Newsweek
Aug. 8, 2005
In our Aug. 1 issue, a sidebar on lobbying groups (“A
User’s Guide to the Groups”) incorrect[ly] identifies James Dobson as a
reverend. He in fact has a Ph.D. in child psychology and goes by Dr.
Dobson. Newsweek regrets the error.

Times-Picayune (New Orleans)
August 6, 2005
Headline clarified: In a headline in Thursday’s editions, James Dobson, chairman of Focus on the Family, a nonprofit organization that focuses on Christian values in the home, was called a minister. Although he runs a ministry, his degrees are in psychology as well as marriage and family counseling.

The Cincinnati Enquirer
June 10, 2005
Dr. James C. Dobson, founder of Focus on the Family, is a psychologist, author and radio broadcaster. A June 3 story on the 2nd Congressional District race misidentified him.

The Kansas City Star
March 9, 2005
An item in The Buzz on Sunday incorrectly referred to James Dobson, chairman of Focus on the Family, as “the Rev. James Dobson.”

St. Petersburg Times
January 29, 2005
Focus on the Family founder James Dobson is a psychologist and a marriage, family and child counselor. A column Friday stated an incorrect profession.

The San Francisco Chronicle
October 3, 2004
Articles on March 14 and Sept. 19 erroneously used the title “the Rev.” for James Dobson, the founder of the Focus on the Family. Dobson is not ordained.

Slate Magazine
January 23, 2004
In a Jan. 19 Chatterbox column, Timothy Noah erroneously referred to the Rev. James Dobson. Dobson is actually a lay Ph.D. (in child development), not an ordained minister.

Chicago Tribune
September 4, 2003
In a story Friday on Page 8 of the main news section, James Dobson, head of the Colorado-based family advocacy group Focus on the Family was misidentified with the title “Rev.” and called an evangelist. He is neither an ordained minister nor an evangelist.

Austin American-Statesman
February 21, 2003
Page B1 of Sunday’s Metro & State section, a story about religious groups debating the issue of homosexuality misidentified James Dobson, founder and president of Focus on the Family. He is not a minister.

The Montgomery Advertiser
November 9, 2002
Setting it straight: A story in the Oct. 13 edition of the Montgomery Advertiser used an incorrect professional title in reference to James Dobson, founder of the Focus on the Family ministry. Dobson is not a reverend. He holds a doctorate in child development.

Wall Street Journal
May 11, 2001
Correction of May 9 Politics & Policy article, James Dobson, founder of Focus on the Family, oversees a radio ministry, but he is not an ordained minister.

The Nation
October 30, 2000
In Alexander Cockburn’s October 2 “Beat the Devil,” Focus on the Family’s president, James Dobson, was erroneously referred to as a “Reverend.”

Kansas City Star
November 23, 1996
Because of a reporter’s error, religious broadcaster James Dobson was identified as a minister in an Oct. 27 profile of Sam Brownback, successful candidate for U.S. Senate. Dobson is a licensed psychologist. The profile also implied that the organization Dobson heads, Focus on the Family, supported Brownback’s candidacy. Dobson made a personal endorsement of Brownback; Focus on the Family does not endorse candidates.

Chicago Tribune
October 31, 1995
An editorial Thursday incorrectly referred to the head of Focus on the Family as Rev. James Dobson. He is not a minister.

Orange County Register
March 2, 1993
James Dobson is a Christian counselor. Because of a reporting error, Dobson was misidentified in a story in the Metro section of Monday’s editions of The Orange County Register.

The Houston Chronicle
January 19, 1993
A story Sunday incorrectly described James Dobson, the head of a Colorado Springs, Colo., evangelical ministry, as a member of the clergy. He is a psychologist.

The Washington Post
June 13, 1989
In a report yesterday about the Moral Majority, James Dobson was identified incorrectly as a minister. He has a PhD in clinical psychology.

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