Scooping Dan Smith
Dan Smith usually is pretty fast in his fromtheeditr blog at pointing out errors in the Roanoke Times, like this one. And this one. And, well, you get the idea.
By Jove, today I think I scooped him. This morning, I retrieved the RT from my mailbox and saw something odd on the front page of the "Extra" section:
No, it's not the huge photo that the RT is famous for. Look below the little picture on the right. The "Bookmark." Here's a closer look:
According to the RT, the Franklin County Book Festival is this Friday. Only it's not. It was A YEAR AGO last Friday! I should know—I was there. So was Dan. And so was Roanoke Times reporter Mike Allen
The RT mentions this event again on page 6 of the "Extra" section, with even more misinformation:
Saturday's lectures by Bob Johnson and Marc Leepson were (you guessed it!) last year. I was there and enjoyed them very much.
So, if y'all are expecting to see me at the Vibe this Friday or at the library on Saturday, I won't be there. I'll be at the William Fleming Class of 1963 reunion.
Unlike the RT which is in the habit of recycling old news, the FC library won't be recycling last year's book festival. As a member of the planning committee for the FC library bookfest—and a member of the Board of Trustees for the library, I know what's happening at the library.
The RT really needs to hire a fact checker.
By Jove, today I think I scooped him. This morning, I retrieved the RT from my mailbox and saw something odd on the front page of the "Extra" section:
No, it's not the huge photo that the RT is famous for. Look below the little picture on the right. The "Bookmark." Here's a closer look:
According to the RT, the Franklin County Book Festival is this Friday. Only it's not. It was A YEAR AGO last Friday! I should know—I was there. So was Dan. And so was Roanoke Times reporter Mike Allen
The RT mentions this event again on page 6 of the "Extra" section, with even more misinformation:
Saturday's lectures by Bob Johnson and Marc Leepson were (you guessed it!) last year. I was there and enjoyed them very much.
So, if y'all are expecting to see me at the Vibe this Friday or at the library on Saturday, I won't be there. I'll be at the William Fleming Class of 1963 reunion.
Unlike the RT which is in the habit of recycling old news, the FC library won't be recycling last year's book festival. As a member of the planning committee for the FC library bookfest—and a member of the Board of Trustees for the library, I know what's happening at the library.
The RT really needs to hire a fact checker.
~
posted by Becky Mushko | 7:19 AM
8 Comments:
And I even thought, oh, I should put that on my calendar and go.
The RT listed an event last week that I thought about going to but when I called about it I learned that it was full - and only open to 8 people to begin with. Why was there even a notice about it, then?
Wow. How did something like that happen? Aren't they usually publishing events based on what the public submits to them? Did someone accidentally save last year's event and it's been waiting to be inserted all this time?
Will this EVER end? That's HORRIBLE! However, I have something that will lift your spirits. You have an award waiting for you on my blog.
Whoa!
It would be nice if, instead of grouping notices into a "calendar," if the RT actually published full press releases that people sent in. The two writers groups I'm in have given up sending releases because the RT ignores them.
The info about the bookfest was sent out last year to the RT—in plenty of time for it to make the paper. They gave us very little publicity then.
But why it would appear now? Doesn't anyone edit the stuff that goes into the paper?
I find mistakes and misspellings on CNN.com all the time and let them know... they send you back a robotic e-mail that says... "we are human and sometimes make mistakes". You'd think CNN could afford computers with spell check...DOH!
Di
The Blue Ridge Gal
Holy cow.
www.GreenerPastures--ACityGirlGoesCountry.blogspot.com
I wrote a letter to the editor in which I pointed out this error (mainly so folks wouldn't show up for an event that isn't happening) and mentioning a few other errors the RT has made lately. I even talked to someone from the editorial department who emailed me to confirm that I was indeed the writer.
Of course, the RT didn't publish it.
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