Accuracy in the age of craziness

[Rene Kaluza]

I've been asked to look at our recent rise in printed/posted errors and devise some ways or some training to get us back on track. I suspect that in these days of reduced staff and reduced hours we've short-circuited or circumvented some of our best practices procedures, and I'm looking at what can be restored there. But I'm wondering if others are seeing the same thing and whether anyone has any tips or ideas I could use as I tackle this assignment. When a staffer tells me I'm crazy because I've asked them to do more, do it faster and maintain accuracy, I want to do more than nod and say "yes." I want some tools I can give them to make my request reasonable. And, "slow down" isn't really an option.

[Steve Buttry]

Rene,

My first round of ethics seminars for API included a session on accuracy and verification. A handout is available at No Train, No Gain. I also deal with accuracy in my current API ethics seminars, Upholding and Updating Ethical Standards. The seminars are heavily subsidized by a grant from the Ethics and Excellence in Journalism Foundation. For $500 ($1,000 for newspapers over 100K circ) plus meals and lodging, you can bring a one-day seminar to your newsroom. Or perhaps you can sponsor jointly with a press association or university. Or if you want to lead your own session, my handout on breaking news deals with the accuracy questions. Of course, I would be happy to work the accuracy session from the first seminar into an Updating & Upholding seminar.

[Michael Roberts]

Rene,

A few years ago we had the same problem and launched into a pretty extensive initiative to clarify roles and standards for accuracy. We also devised a reporting system that tracked not only errors but also catches (errors caught by the copy editors) and held those making those errors (published or not) responsible on a weekly basis. It was cumbersome at first but very quickly had a dramatic effect. I'd be happy to send some background and samples of the related tools. We're about to launch into a refresher to tackle another round of new online challenges with accuracy.

[Rene Kaluza]

Michael,
Sorry to take so long to respond, but ... furloughs ..., yada, yada, yada. I would like have the background and related tools you mentioned. It will be a place to start. I feel fortunate. We have a group of reporters who are meeting to keep the conversations going on narrative and improving content and copy. That tells me we have a group who are interested in keeping standards high. Thanks for the help.

Michael Roberts said:

Rene,

A few years ago we had the same problem and launched into a pretty extensive initiative to clarify roles and standards for accuracy. We also devised a reporting system that tracked not only errors but also catches (errors caught by the copy editors) and held those making those errors (published or not) responsible on a weekly basis. It was cumbersome at first but very quickly had a dramatic effect. I'd be happy to send some background and samples of the related tools. We're about to launch into a refresher to tackle another round of new online challenges with accuracy.