Get your facts correct: July 23, 2001 issue of New Thinking

July 23, 2001 New Thinking:
Get your facts correct

Website content management

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July 23, 2001

Get your facts correct

By Gerry McGovern

Fact checking is an essential content skill. It’s the last thing that should be done with content before it is published. Writing, revising and editing content can all introduce errors. Numbers, dates, quotes, website addresses, names of people and organizations, can end up incorrect.

Fact checking ensures that the appropriate corrections are made. Fact checking is a difficult and time-consuming process. Even in traditional publishing, it is often not properly done.

I’m a fan of the songwriter Lou Reed. For years I thought his real name was Louis ‘Firbank,’ because in practically every music encyclopedia I read, that was his given real name. Then I read an article by legendary rock journalist Lester Bangs on how Lou Reed became Louis Firbank.

Bangs had been editor of Creem Magazine and as a joke in the letters page, wrote that Lou Reed’s real name was Firbank. This ‘joke’ got picked up by one publisher, then another, then another …

The last issue of New Thinking mentioned a report by the Markle Foundation. I had problems finding its website because a Reuters news story I read called it the ‘Merkle’ Foundation. Now, you would think that an organization as reputable as Reuters would get their facts correct. Maybe it’s something to do with the pressure to publish quickly on the Web.

It is almost impossible to get everything you write 100 percent correct. Most readers understand this and will excuse a minor mistake or two. Think of yourself as a car dealer. Think of every minor mistake you make as a ‘scratch’ on that new car you’re trying to sell. (Major mistakes are like engine faults.)

Here are a number of things to do to avoid getting too many ‘scratches’ on your content:

Print out the content you’re going to fact check. Read it line by line and make a note or mark beside every fact you need to check
A fact-checking and editing trick is to start at the end of the document with a ruler. Put the ruler underneath the last line. Gradually push it upwards through the document, as you read the text right from left, watching out only for facts that need checking
Be sceptical and investigative. Don’t accept anything just because it comes from a ‘reputable’ source
Never rely on a single source. Always try to find at least two or three sources to confirm a particular fact. If a source you come across conflicts, then spread your net wider
If an organization is being named, go to its website, and/or find official documentation that will confirm how it spells its name
If the document contains website links, copy ‘n’ paste them into a browser and test them out so as to ensure that each link is correct
Be extra careful with dates and numbers. Watch out for zeros and commas in numbers. Also, check whether it says ‘millions,’ when in fact it should say ‘billions’

Gerry McGovern

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Think of yourself as a car dealer. Think of every minor content mistake you make as a ‘scratch’ on that new car you’re trying to sell. (Major mistakes are like engine faults.)