Gordon Woolf's Blog

Errors in newspapers: there should be fewer

Much as I enjoy stories of errors in newspapers (one of the best I've seen was out local newspaper which had "headline in here" in 144pt - 2" - type, an error that I caused to be seen on TV and in the book Type & Layout), they are not happening *just* because of new systems. They have happened even in manual days because of the rush to get the first edition on the streets.

It has always been one of the benefits of living in a country area or one distant from the production point. (The UK newspaper the Guardian became known as "The Grauniad" by Private Eye because of all the spelling errors there was no time to fix.) What should be noted is that most such errors are soon fixed and the vast majority of the readership will have seen nothing odd.

When I was a subeditor on one of Murdoch's newspapers I recall the deputy editor looking at the first edition and shouting at the copy desk: "Well we got it out, now let's turn it into a newspaper". And that was in hot metal days.

The normal setup for newspaper staffing is that galleys, or their equivalent, are read either in printed proof form or on screen, originally by proofreaders, now more likely as part of the copyediting process.

At this stage the copyeditor should take out rude words in the slug because they too often get through to print. The slug is the abbreviated text used to identify a story, originally one word, now more often a kind of suggested headline. As a newspaper editor and chief of staff I banned this kind of dummy head; even if the person writing it would not want it to be the final one it should be something which makes sense and helps clarify what the main point is of the story. If the writer can't write any kind of headline, then it often idicates that the writer is confused.

The headline itself is usually added on the page layout so may be seen only by the person doing the layout of the page. In the past, errors and questionable headlines were often picked up by the compositors, i.e. those who put the page together in metal or phototypesetting, but those people no longer exist. It is therefore most likely the end of the compositor which leads to more errors getting through -- they'd even take a hammer to the plate on the press if necessary since it was sometimes preferable to ensure that no one could read it rather than let an error go through. You can't effectively take a hammer to a digital press, though I'm sure there are many who would have liked to.

The proofreaders who were reading the page proofs might still have been reading the proofs when the press started. On a newspaper with a large or growing circulation, the plate with those changes might then sit by the press until there was a paper break and the press had to be stopped unless there was some danger of legal action. There were trucks, trains, buses and sometimes even aircraft waiting for the newspaper bundles. A little embarrassment for a journalist or editor was not a consideration.

We may actually see fewer errors as newsrooms change over from a print first attitude to one of web first, so the more carefully researched and probably longer print version would have already appeared in two or three versions on the web. Any errors which get through to print will have happened in the final rewrite stage.

The future of news stories is seen in a quote from the consultant brought in by Vance Publishing chief Peggy Waker (even though that's a magazine group): "Instead of researching and writing a lengthy print article, then repurposing it for the Web, the new process would run in reverse: posting a first take of breaking news at 200 words, following with an update at 400 words, then producing a longer second-day story, which would subsequently be repurposed for the print publication." See http://bit.ly/3dDiBU

Ms Walker also tells of expecting an outcry when the web and press editing teams were merged, and not just for single publications but for the whole group. Unexpectedly the large open editorial room was popular -- as it used to be when most publishers were like that.

I'm also pleased to see that computers are now significantly quieter. When I first changed from paper editing the increase in noise level and the size of the monitors meant there was a massive divide between editors. No longer could you read out a questionable phrase to no one in particular, confident that if something was wrong you'd get a shout from a fellow editor nearby. I suspect that as editors get physically closer once more, those co-operative days which caught so many errors will be back.

How long does writing take?

When I was chief of reporting staff for a local weekly newspaper I used to tell reporters they should get a column inch of copy from every minute they spent on the phone. Columns were narrow so it worked out about 25 words to the inch, so a 500 word item should never take more than 20 minutes on the phone and about the same to write it from their notes.

Only one reporter on the newspaper was given the time to do in-depth research which could involve contacting many people in the hope of a snippet of information. But even he would keep several stories on the go at any one time so he always had a backup lead story for the paper which could be ready in half an hour or so if a planned story failed to come through.

Later, as a freelance I got 5 cents an inch from the same paper, so it would only pay if I cc'd the local radio news, and the State dailies plus a rewrite or two for farming newspapers and/or magazines.

The killer is the research time, but, as prolific author Isaac Asimov maintained, the key is to do your research once and then write it many times. Research into a period of history could produce a factual article for adults, a similar piece for children, a short historic story and maybe even a piece of present day or science fiction based on the same events and reactions transposed to a different time.

"I want to be a writer"

The words appeared on a forum to writers and small publishers: "I really want to become a writer."

If you want to be a writer, you write. You may be an unsuccessful writer or a successful one but it is impossible to stop a writer from being a writer.

As one of those people, I started writing as soon as I was capable of stringing words together with stories pinned up on school noticeboards and in school magazines.

I used my first wages to buy a typewriter and wrote a book which was never published. Eventually I found the one thing which could stop me writing -- the publishing business I started to publish my books after my initial publisher went broke. I went on to publish books by others and I had no time left to write. So the publishing company had to go, and I sold it to one of my authors. I wonder now if he is finding the same problem.

Writers have to write. You do not "become" a writer by applying to be one or taking a course.

Nost recently the writing urge has been satisifed by rewriting some of my older articles which, though published, were ones where I retained the copyright and therefore could use a basis for updating. (And that is an important point: because writers have to write they often overlook the aspects of being in business as a writer which will enable them to keep control of their writing; those aspects of being a writer can, and should be, learned).

The rewritten items do not have the same value as the original, so I am making them available at no cost under the Creative Commons licensing system for free use in ezines and blogs, etc, provided they mention me as the source and the name of at least one of my books so I may achieve a small extra income from those. You will find those articles at http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Gordon_Woolf

Journalism at its best

As someone commented on an email list for copy editors, the the big difference at a smallish weekly is that just about anyone can march into the editor-publisher's office and take him to task for anything in the paper. They also collar him at the supermarket, on the street, or at a high school hockey game. "There is no statute of limitations. Accountability, up close and personal", stated the writer.

And for those reasons, in my view, it is the best form of journalism there is! My first experience of it (after having been an editor of a couple of magazines, including one with a worldwide circulation) was on a country town paper with an editorial staff of two (the owner/manager and me). It came out at 11am on a Thursday morning and if it was a few minutes late there would be a queue stretching down the street. Even the bus to the next town waited on the opposite side of the street though there was no official stop there -- the driver knew his passengers would be in the queue, as well as having to face the people in that tiny town if he arrived without the supply for the general store.

You very quickly get to know how to spell every family name in town, and you are working every hour that you are awake. Sometimes there are national stories too and you see the difference in the care which has to be taken to get things right. Getting the little facts right is also the key to acceptance as an outsider, especially when you print the things they'd rather were not said.

City newspapers used to send young reporters for spells of a few months on small country newspapers but that is a tradition which seems to have disappeared, though it helped many borderline publications to survive and gave the bigger newspapers much better journalists.

Does punctuation matter?

"Let's eat, Dad" or "Let's eat Dad". A comma can make a big difference.

Is punctuation more important than spelling?

I think it is. After all, most spelling is not so far off that you can't work out what the writer means - and this country and the UK understands what Americans write despite substantial spelling differences.

But an error in punctuation can cause mayhem. And while spelling checkers can at least offer some options, there has been little success with grammar checkers and even less success with the aspect of those which check punctuation.

Of course there will be arguments about where many commas should be put. They were a source of more disagreement with my co-author, Geoffrey Heard, on our book Success in Store than any other subject. I use more commas than he does, but we also tend to use them in different places. However, we did agree on those where they could influence the meaning, and that is important.

Lawyers tend not to use commas and one explained that they need to make it clear that when a comma is included in a contract they have considered its placement and have decided it is necessary.

Despite that, there have been problems with contracts where vast sums have depended on the interpretation of meaning based on a comma.

We can point to some sites where problems caused by this humblest of punctuation marks is discussed:

The University of Hawaii's Hohonu, a journal of academic writing has a nice piece online by Andy Gramlich: Commas, the biggest little quirks in the English language http://www.uhh.hawaii.edu/academics/hohonu/writing.php?id=82

Commas have saved a life. lost a million dollars or been blasphemous according to stories at http://clipmarks.com/clipmark/A2E17AAC-4E28-4EA7-B1FC-D5064B155006/

National Punctuation Day was a not massively successful promotion in the USA but sadly it seems to have disappeared. Last year (2008) it was on September 24, but that's not far off as I write and the site is still all about last year, though some are still useful like the piece at http://www.nationalpunctuationday.com/meaning.html .

My co-author (and now publisher) is probably right. I use too many commas. You can probably delete most in this article, but a few are needed, including, I hope, the very first one.

Where does news come from?

That's a question we really all know the answer to but which many of us have decided to forget or disregard.

News in its original form comes from two sources:

1. People who want the information to be known (i.e. businesses, groups, politicians, individuals).
2. People who ask questions of businesses, groups, politicians, individuals.

The first group, whether they know it or not, are publicists. The second group, again whether they know it or not, are journalists.

The second group are people who mostly have to be paid for doing their job by the people who read what they write. In some cases this direct payment can be separated by their work being paid for by the first group, usually indirectly by paying for space or time in the media which then has funds to publish output from the second group.

Group 1 knows that unless there is an acceptable quantity of material from Group 2, then Group 1's output will not be read as avidly and in extreme cases may not be read at all.

This was understood by the men of commerce who started the first trade magazines. By including at least some independent information in their catalogs, those catalogs were read more widely and more thoroughly.

But now news stories from the people in Group 2 may be so widely disseminated that the originators are forgotten. Google News Alerts can tell you what is happening, and of course they quote sources. A page of "old media" national news in a local online "webnews" is briefs which quote and link to earlier sources, not even necessarily to the publication which published the original story first.

There have been union battles to ensure that print journalists may receive a few cents extra if the story appears online for the first time, but who gets the benefit from a level of syndication where even the original syndicators may lose control.

The Murdochs are right in saying that the consumer must pay for online content, but the problem is working out just where the payment point is on a tortuous route from originator to the last consumer in the line.

Keeping to deadlines: How is it done?

How do editors budget their time to ensure that all deadlines get met? That was an interesting question on an email list. The question continued: What techniques/tricks do you find helpful?

I'm a former editor, chief sub-editor, sports editor, news editor, chief of reporting staff, publisher etc of various magazines and newspapers, and the prime technique I've seen is to ensure that the person outsiders are happy to deal with as the senior person is not the one who has responsibility for production and meeting deadlines.

Hence the many terms - managing editor, production editor, senior editor, editor in chief, and the sometimes junior position of just plain editor.

Then of course there are the positions which relate the to actual job being done, so, while I have been night editor on a morning newspaper, I was that for several hours on certain nights only.

Thus, the main technique is to not have the person responsible for deadlines being in a position to have time stolen.

When someone gets through those barriers, what is the next protection? As a normally quiet person, I've found shouting quite effective.

Plan for disasters, then only the details are "unforeseen". For example, on the production side, know who you can call to say -- "I need our paper printed tonight".

When someone else misses a deadline, you need to know which writers you can ask to get a major story written in a couple of hours? But don't allow deadlines to be broken in the first place. And always have backup material.

There will be deadlines which have to be met and deadlines which are set for those who are unable to meet deadlines. Telling a writer "You're too late; we may use it next issue," usually works.

The most difficult situation is when you are editor/publisher/owner and the only staff writer on a weekly newspaper. To help overcome that I had two offices -- the second one with entrances from back and front of the building.

For the editor to have a second desk in the main editorial production area was another trick I learned from the editor of a major daily and it can be easier to work in a busy, noisy office than in the quiet of the management offices where receptionists are loathe to tell anyone that you are in, but can't see anyone. At least they could look and truthfully say "he's not in his office".

On another paper, a long time ago, one of the linotype operators was infallible in knowing when I was in their area for a legitimate reason or when to say "Who are you hiding from?"

I love Douglas Adams' comment (you know the one: "I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by"), but unfortunately it doesn't work.

How to start a publication

I get asked this question every month. The latest was:

I’m in a church that does not have a magazine and they want one. Can I start it? All I have ever produced is a sales newsletter for a firm I work for.

My reply is that I would be surprised if, in a typical organization of a few hundred people, I would be surprised if there are not other people who have had at least as experience as you -- perhaps for a school, business or service group. They may be a starting point and you can share your past experience.

Also look at what is being produced by other organizations -- and it is common for copies of locally produced publications to be sent to local libraries, so the librarian may also be a good contact. And while you may decide that your needs can be served by a home-produced publication, perhaps photocopied, a call at local printing businesses may also produce samples of publications, and an indication of other services, such as someone who can set up templates in a word processor or page layout program and help train in their use.

This kind of enquiry may also help to give some idea of costs, depending on what services have to be paid for and what can be done on a voluntary basis. You also have to make choices on whether a publication can be at least partly financed by advertisements, and how you will obtain editorial: can it be all produced by you and your members, or will you need to seek outside contributions.

Several of the chapters in my book "How to Start and Produce a Magazine or Newsletter" look at various ways of organizing a magazine and at the many levels of production from photocopying or laser printing to digital printing and to the uses of commercial and specialist printers.

Reading a print dialog

Can I print a selection of pages? That question came up recently in a discussion and I realised it is not always obvious.

Put simply, a good print dialog which shows a entry longish box named Pages, will usually let you enter non-continguous ranges. If you see two little boxes, labelled From and To, then you are stuck with one range.

In the first case you’ll be able to enter something like":

1-6,8-10,15-

That would mean pages 1 to 8, skip 7, then print 8 to 10, skip pages 11 to 14 and then print from 15 to the end.

There may also be a checkbox to select whether to print blank pages, but be wary that what you think of as blank may not look that way to the computer if there are headers or footers, or even just carriage returns.

Printer options are generally in the driver rather than being a selection from the printer itself, so they may be different between alternate drivers for the same printer -- there are major differences for example between the fit-to-page abilities of my Samsung laser under Windows XP and Windows 7. (It needs more clicks to make a web page fit to a printed page under the newer OS).

Another possibility is to make a PDF of the file since some PDF software, including Acrobat, give an option to  include blank pages, and you can also print by selecting ranges.

Software for novel writers and others

An Australian novelist and programmer, Simon Haynes, has put together the kind of software he needed for his own writing needs. You can find it at http://www.spacejock.com/yWriter5.html and it is free.

I suspect it will also meet the needs of others who, like novelists, need to move text around and to keep track of facts and descriptions in what they are writing. I use an outliner, but have never been happy with the outliners built in to Word and OpenOffice. They just let you give an item a subheading and then open and close the subheads to add and edit the text under them. If you move a subheading then all the associated text moves with it, and is surprising how often an idea which you thought was best in one section or chapter needs to go somewhere else.

The advantage of Ywriter is that you can make separate notes of where you think your ideas are going. In use by a novelist this will include sections of facts about characters and places etc so that you do not change a character's eye colour or have them change venues impossibly fast.  and installs quickly.

I don't think I'll ever write the great Australian novel. It's been said that inside every journalist is a novel and that with any luck that's where it will stay. But this could be useful in helping keep track for what I do write. I'll certainly be playing round with it a but more, and will also have to check the library for Simon's Hal Spacejock comedy scifi books -- there are four of them, distributed by Penguin.

The software will not replace your word processor, but it may help more than novelists in organising ideas into words before they make their way to the word processor, just as they then eventually make their way to a page layout program.