2004 was a better year for Globe accuracy

Page 2 of 2 -- Indeed, most of the corrections are, if not that minor, relatively routine, even if they sometimes pose inconvenience for readers -- as in the play that was listed to run through Sunday but had actually closed last week. Mixed in are some far more serious -- of a wrong "fact" that was essential to the story's premise; a main character misidentified; a criminal charge presumed but not filed.

ADVERTISEMENT

A bit of context: While there were 1,031 known errors, there were at least 58,922 stories written in 2004.

The analysis of types of errors shows "misidentifications" led with 293, followed by "misstatements" at 166 and "misrepresentations" at 111. The most troubling category -- "misquotes" -- remained almost unchanged from last year at 11. There were 98 corrections of misspellings, although the paper does not attempt to correct all misspellings or grammatical errors.

The vast majority of mistakes were handled with a conventional correction on A2. A few dozen were addressed with notes of omission, clarification, or an editor's explanation.

The detailed annual analysis, prepared by Globe library chief Elisabeth Tuite and her staff, shows that nearly two thirds -- or 618 -- of the year's corrections were the result of reporting errors, up substantially from last year, while editing errors, 241, were down. Designers, researchers, photographers, sources, and production problems were responsible for the rest.

Most of the reporters who had any errors at all had only one; a dozen or so had between five and nine. One had more.

Some mistakes are truly unavoidable -- such as the time a writer took the spelling of an author's name from the cover of her publisher's book proof. Trouble was, the publisher had misspelled its own author's name. Thus, another correction was added to the annual tally, an exercise not without its ironies.

"The more you run, the worse it looks for you," says Baron, "although you are being more rigorous" -- and doing the right thing.

The ombudsman represents the readers. Her opinions and conclusions are her own. Phone 617-929-3020 or, to leave a message, 929-3022. Our e-mail address is ombud@globe.com.