The inconvenience of technology
We made a mistake in Thursday's newspaper which we write about today. We said that a 13-year-old Northwest Middle School student had been charged in connection with the so-called hit list found at the school last fall. That was wrong. No student has been charged. We didn't know the identity of the teenager, but we wouldn't have published it anyway because of his or her age. So, to that extent, the human harm has been minimized.
The error occurred because we depended on the exchange of voice mail for the basis of the story. Obviously, the inability to actually talk to a source hinders our ability to ask follow up questions and clarifying questions. It promotes misunderstanding, which is precisely what happened in this case. We should have known better than to rely on it for such an important story.
Comments (3)
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Admitting the mistake, both in the paper and at your blog, is admirable. And as you said, no real damage was done, since no names were used.
Posted on January 14, 2005 9:58 AM
I feel your pain. Yesterday I told people a colleague had died and he hadn't. He's alive. Not well, but not yet dead.
It could have been worse.
Posted on January 14, 2005 4:06 PM
Thanks, jw. Indeed it could. I read your post and my heart goes out to you. Glad that one ended with nothing but you being a little embarrassed. Well, you know what I mean.
Posted on January 14, 2005 10:16 PM