Red Lodge picket. [volume] (Red Lodge, Mont.) 1889-1907, 1894-03-10
no.
NEWSPAPER ERRORS.


lSfeti2l CORRESPONDENCE.
CHICAGO, March Sit is ,roba bic that
almost every newspaper reader in the
United States at one time or another his
berated his favorite journal ami uttered
abjurGa1ioas concerning its editors aud
reporters because Of some error Of facf.
some nisspelliIs CT a proper nalue ur
some ircorrect statistical statement.
And Yet ii these fault finders We're 10
stop and think. the wonder would be
Eot that there are hlun;ierS in newspa-
peGs, but that there are so few.
Although n a general way modern
readers Of modern newspapers know
something Of the methods employed i,r
laying the news of the world before tho
people at daily or weekly intervals. yet
few not actually engaged IN the work rt:
alize through how many hands eac}r
item has to pass FROM the time it is
perhaps a ru1ncr Oh the street and
compact paragraph or Il double headed,
scare headed, screaming scoop" columns
In length and an integral part of tho
printed sheet. Let the reader Of this
letter mentally follow the fortunes of a
single, plain, everyday news item on its
way to the reader, ana he Will undcr-
stand what mean.
Among the assignments given cut Ev
the city editor one has been for the il-
yestigatlon Of 4 rUnor that Julgc Hevi-
waite and Lawyer Huctumso have had
an alteration on the street. 1t hap
Penets the day before and has SO far been
kept out of print. 1t may be permanent
l,- kept out, but it must be run to earth
antl a reporter who is known to have q
Enack of tracing and unravoling just
this sort Of story is started ont.
1t will not Go, in the opi,ion OF this
experienced ''%athernp," to go direct to
tie judge and the lawyer until the s;-
lent points Of the stcry have been got
together. So the reporter visits first
Judge Heviwate's friends, to whom lie
says he understands that the judge got
decidedly the worst of it in the contest,
verbal or physical. They have been
sworn to secrecy On the subject, but this
skillful exhibition of his slight infornia--
ton by the reporter is too much for
them, and they proceed to Indignantly
deny the insinUation, and to tell the true
story of the row, according to their
lights.
After the reporter has seen four or five
Of the judges friends, each of whom has
talked more or less, and each of whom
has been thanked for setting the reporter
straight, he seeks the friends Of Lawyer
Huccumso. Similar tactics and similar
experiences follow, ard with Il mass Of
conflicting material" in his possession
the newspaper man then goes to the prin-
cirals Each of these protests against
publicity. Perhaps both refuse to talk,
perhaps both talk freely AT last the
reporter returns to the newspaper office
and tells the story III brief, as he under,
stands it, to the city editor.
"Iialf a column says that fanttion--
ary laconically. posing his blue pencil
for q moment in the air. Tell both
sides in full
Then begins the reporters real work.
At least T. men have told him IL differ
ent tales Of the trouble, which must all
be fused into half column Of space
say from 500 to soc words-and "both
sides must be tclI in fail" When the
story is completed by the reporter. it is
more nearly q column than half that,
length.
"Hurry up, your sings ont the city
editor. Must have that story now
Then to a ''reaCer,' Here, cut this stuff,
down about half-qlick!''
And the blue pencil Of the reader goes
and rapidly through sen
fully prepared with a view of giving.
"both sides in full" a head is written,
the whole rolled tight and shot through
a pneumatic tube to the composing room.
There the copy is cut into takes" or
pieces of few line, each the later tie
and given out to erhaps half
dozen separate printers. Zach sets his
take as rapidly as possible. using in do
Ing SO many little pieces of metal. In IL
very short time the "tal,es'' are assem-
blel, and the story is 'prCved.' In the
aggregate all the way from 600 to 600
bits Of metal or types have been arrang-
cd in sequence by the nen III setting this
story, and every type out OF its proper
place means an error Of some sort. The
matter must now be read by IL proof
reader and a copyfolder, then corrected
md hurried to the form" where it is to-
take its place with other ''stories.' each
hundreds or thousands Of
,icces Of type.
1t IS late now, and the PAPER must be
made up. The "makeup' editor, who
perhaps has neither seen nor heard Of
his "story' two minutes before he or
lers it placed, finds it too long, even
after the readers heroic compression,
md cuts out a few more lines ''in type
He buses himself for some time doing
his with Il great variety of articles and
stories long and short on all sorts OF
opics. When the last form is locked
ip and on its way to the press. there is
tuite & collection Of disjointed lines and
paragraphs that have been lopred off
iere and there.
Perhaps he left out Of the story about
Judge Heviwate and Lawyer Huccumsp
: five lire paragraph that contains the
neat Of the entire matter. Probably
lot, for though be works quickly he has
earned to discern almost instantaneous
=. and the chances are that-thongh,
ounting the men from whom the facts
we're obtained, the printers and proof
eaders, the reporters and editors, each
story in the paper has passed through
rom dozen to 80 ilands-therc are no Sc.
ious blunders.
But, as | said at the beginning, it's a
Wonder there are not more errors III ev--
ry issue Of every newspaper printed,
nd if you had to help make newspaper
or awhile you'd agree with me.
c. Y. DEyEREuX
In England the blind form .0S per cent