ONE OF the problems with being the Ombudsman of The Cavalier Daily is the high standard of work that the paper produces. This consistent level of achievement means I am often reduced to focusing on relatively minor aspects of the paper for criticism. This attention to smaller details is in line with the continuing effort to make the paper as excellent as possible. While it is often more interesting to have a major ethics or professional procedure issue to address, the minor aspects also have a substantial effect on how the paper is perceived in terms of trustworthiness, reliability and professionalism. With that goal in mind, I present a "grab bag" of problems this week.
Myriad Editing and Production Errors
While the paper is in transition from one year's staff to another, it is expected that there will be the occasional errors in spelling, layout and other aspects of the paper. Typically, it has not been the practice of the Ombudsman to comment on such minor lapses, unless they pose a continuing problem. This past week, however, there was a higher than average rate of basic errors and omissions.
Noticably more frequent were errors in spelling and the omission of indefinite articles. While spelling errors are bound to occur occasionally, the expectation is that the frequency of such errors will be fairly low. The expectation has particularly been strengthened in the past 10 to 15 years as newspapers, including The Cavalier Daily, have moved to computer-based layout systems which allow for automated spell-checking.
As for the omission of indefinite articles, this is increasingly becoming a problem in writing. The shorthand communications of speech and e-mail have begun to "spill" into more formal writing. The paper should guard against such "casualisms" in its writing, not from some sense of historical formality, but because the omission of indefinite articles make it harder to read text.
Also notable this week was an extra space in the word "University" in the graphic on the top of Monday's front page. When you put something on the front page, much less above the fold, it should be the most carefully checked piece of work due to its prominent position. Many people only read the front page, and so an error there is particularly likely to be noticed by numerous readers.
Also, some accuracy problems were pointed out this week by readers. The most certain and obvious error was in Thursday's Nation/World section, where there was the following headline for an item: "Powell to present Pakistan relief plan to Israel." Despite whatever interest the Israeli people have in our plans regarding Pakistan, the news item was, of course, about Palestine.
Also, after my vocal criticism of the comic strip artists regarding repeating material, I now feel compelled to take to task the production editors and operations manager. Among the features repeated in the few weeks on the comics page were the two syndicated strips "Boondocks" and "Dilbert," the crossword and the horoscope. Well, that is pretty much everything on that page that isn't produced by the resident artists, thus forcing the question of what is going on with that particular page.
Another minor humor note is the treatment of Lee Camp's "Laugh Lines" column. The headlines for this column are often written as if "Laugh Lines" were a regular news item. This past Monday was a perfect example with "Picking a pet: Iguanas are unsafe, but pooches are a perfect choice." Please, give Mr. Camp a break and either let him write his own headlines, or at least keep in mind that his is a humor column. Writing headline copy is an art, and a bad headline can cause people to skip right over an otherwise well-written piece.
Friday's Sports layout was choppy, and resulted in major page flipping to read stories. The Cavalier Daily has avoided this type of layout to a large degree, and it has resulted in an easily readable "flow" to the paper. The Friday Sports layout was a jarring reminder how good layout facilitates reading. Keeping stories together, or at least having all the continuations on the same page or contiguous pages has worked best.
Reporters Should Note
Reporters need to be careful to note the relevant roles or professional identities of people they quote in news stories. In Ann-Woods Issacs' story, "Morning-after pill legislation passes Senate," on Thursday discussing the emergency contraception bill that just passed the Virginia Senate, she quotes Georganne Long of Richmond Obstetrics-Gynecological Associates. What Ms. Issacs doesn't do is identify what Ms. Long's relationship is to this issue, leaving the readers to guess why Ms. Long's opinion might be relevant. Is Ms. Long a doctor, nurse, receptionist or business manager at Richmond Obstetrics-Gynecological Associates? Does she play a role in the pending legislative action? Without this information readers are not only in the dark about the relevance of Ms. Long's opinion, but also at a loss to evaluate her credibility, the likeliness of other agendas, and thus, the weight to give to her comments.
A Minor Ethics Issue
And finally, there is a minor ethics issue to address. The Cavalier Daily provides a great informational service to the University community when it produces its special "Elections" issues. Offering a uniform opportunity for candidates to present information, the paper serves as a valuable aid to voters in choosing a candidate. Here, the ethics issue arises when one of the candidates is also a Cavalier Daily staffer - like Cavalier Daily columnist Katherine Martini. The paper should disclose the relationship in the text box given to the candidate. The goal is for a paper to avoid even the merest appearance of impropriety or conflict of interest.
While the issue here is relatively minor, as the standard format and wide inclusion limits the possibility of an improper or unduly favorable treatment of any particular candidate, the potential impact is greater. For example, if The Cavalier Daily were also to issue an endorsement for Martini's candidacy later, they would clearly have to reveal the relationship in that context. This might lead readers to ask why it wasn't initially disclosed. With potential conflicts, the best course of action is to disclose early and often.
(Brent Garland can be reached at ombud @cavalierdaily.com.)
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