Regret the Error

They're here every morning, folks

Who says newspapers don't have sense of humor anymore? The folks over at the Akron Beacon Journal made a horn-related error in their, wait for it, "guide to Tuba-Christmas." So they got all punny on the correction:

We blew it.
In Thursday's guide to Tuba-Christmas, we paired photos of the euphonium and the alto horn with the wrong information.
Here are the correct photos and descriptions:
Euphonium: The concert band or symphony orchestra equivalent of the baritone, this instrument has four valves instead of three, which gives the player better control. Price range: $2,700-$4,000.
Alto horn: One size smaller than the baritone or euphonium, and correspondingly higher in range, this instrument looks like a miniature baritone. French horn players can't participate in marching band because of the way their instrument is played, so they often switch to alto horn for marching band. Alto is nicknamed ``peck horn'' because of the pecking sound of the off-the-beat parts written for it. Price range: $1,200-$3,000.

Not that they put the correct photos online, mind you.

We Crunked: Regret corrections

All of us in Regret land hope you are having a Crunk-tastic Friday. Please enjoy this weekly look at our mistakes. And thanks to Steve, Dan and Stephanie for helping us look bad (but honest).

• Our December 10 post, "Potty mouth," misspelled the word "because" in this sentence: "Clearly, the only reason we're using this correction from The Journal Sentinel is because involves Dave Barry and a 'potty poncho.'" It has been corrected. We regret the error.
• Our December post, "Killing two birds with one correction," used the term "former heroine addict" instead of "former heroin addict" to describe Nicole Richie in this sentence: "This LA Times correction for a Joel Stein column contains everything you need for the holidays: a Presidential photo op, a turkey, and a former heroin addict." It has been corrected. We regret the error. Also, one reader pointed out that, "we recovery types don't consider anyone a 'former' addict." While true, we'd rather not get sued for deleting "former." But duly noted.

Oy

Upset, this New York Times correction makes us. And at Hanukkah time, too.

An article in The Arts on Monday about new films by Israeli directors mistranslated the Hebrew title of the movie "Or." The word means light, not skin.

Rewriting history

Page Six had to come clean about implying that Nic Cage's wife was, well, stupid. The correction:

OUR spies need to clean out their ears and get some glasses. On Nov. 23, we incorrectly reported that Nicolas Cage's wife, Alice, while at the L.A. premiere of "National Treasure," asked someone, "What is the Declaration of Independence?" and that Cage came to her rescue and stated, "Please don't ask my wife any history questions." We apologize to the Cages who, we are sure, are both well versed in American history.

Math is hard

Some fuzzy numbers from selected papers:

A story in the Dec. 13 Business section about MetroPCS referred to 4.5       potential customers in the D-FW area. The correct number is 4.5 million.

An article Tuesday in Section A about the indictment of former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet said approximately 10,000 people were slain during the 1973-90 military rule. An official Chilean report concluded that 3,197 people were killed or disappeared for political reasons during that period.

In 2002, the Graham Bros. Construction Asphalt Plant in Peel Region produced 53,342 kg of pollutants in 2002, not 3,870,518 as a Web site source stated in error. As a result, a Dec. 8 graphic in the Star on pollution levels across the GTA unfairly represented pollutant levels at the plant.

Way to smash those stereotypes

The Miami Herald ran a detailed correction about a full-blooded Seminole who plans to attend law school after graduation:

In a 1B story in Tuesday's Broward Herald about JoJo Dakota Osceola, some incorrect information was provided about her background and the school's program. Osceola, 17, is not the only full-blooded Seminole to attend the University School, a private school (grades K-12) on the campus of Nova Southeastern University. Osceola says she will attend the University of Miami after high school, then plans to study law. Her boyfriend's name is Byron Billie. Finally, Osceola participated in an annual program called International Night, sponsored by the University School.

...and then followed it up with this correction:

In a B section photo caption in some editions of Wednesday's Herald, a Seminole video gaming machine was mischaracterized.

Another Kerik-related error, thanks to one from way back

The Associated Press moved a story to many papers that incorrectly likened Bernard Kerik's nanny troubles to a 1993 Clinton nominee for the Justice Department's civil rights division. AP has now corrected this story and also admitted to making the same error back in 1995. The correction:

In a Dec. 10 brief and story about Bernard Kerik's withdrawal as homeland security secretary-designate, The Associated Press reported erroneously that Lani Guinier, who was President Clinton's choice to head the Justice Department's civil rights division in 1993, had not paid taxes for a domestic worker. A spokesman for her at Harvard Law School said there was no such problem, and the White House never indicated that there was. Clinton said he withdrew her nomination because of her legal writings on racial issues. The same incorrect reference to Guinier and unpaid taxes on a domestic worker was in a 1995 AP item about Clinton choices who had problems in the confirmation process.

For those about to rock (we correct you)

An LA Times review of it-band Franz Ferdinand tried to put a nice face on an evil song:

A review of the KROQ Acoustic Christmas Concert in Monday's Calendar section misstated the title of the song "I'm Your Villain," performed by the band Franz Ferdinand, as "I'm Your Fella."

Things left unsaid

From The Portland Press Herald:

A recipe for hot spinach artichoke crab dip published Dec. 1 was incorrect. It was a freelance columnist's error.

And whose error was it to not give the correct recipe?

From The San Fransisco Chronicle:

The rendering that accompanied the Strictly Commercial column last Sunday on Page H4 was not of Palisades Resort and Spa, as the caption stated.

How about a strictly factual explanation of what it was?

A front page correction

Tuesday's edition of Montreal's The Gazette featured a very serious front page correction related to a very serious error made by the paper:

In a story that appeared on Page A1 on Saturday, The Gazette reported incorrectly that Dr. Adrien Dandavino faces an allegation of sexual misconduct. In fact, Dr. Dandavino is acting as a syndic or investigator on behalf of the Quebec College of Physicians and is making the allegation of misconduct against another doctor, Rejean Vanier. The Gazette regrets the error and apologizes to Dr. Dandavino.

First of all, they did the right thing by putting this on the front page. Second, we wonder why it took until Tuesday to correct an error that occurred on Saturday. Third, why did they have to lock it behind subscriber-only access online? The excerpted version that anyone can read here includes everything except the last sentence -- which contains the apology and expression of regret. Just make it free, yo. You owe it to the Doc.
 
One more thing: the Saturday edition of Canadian papers is the biggest selling edition of the week. Should an error in the biggest edition of a paper be required to appear in the next installment of said edition in addition to an appearance as soon as the error is discovered? There are literally thousands of people who read the Saturday Gazette that will not see Tuesday's paper.

Talk amongst yourselves.