The following is an excerpt from OpinionJournal’s “Best of the Web” at The Wall Street Journal written by the editor, James Taranto.
Other Than That, the Story Was Accurate
“An earlier version of this article, using information from J.L. Galache, an astronomer at the International Astronomical Union’s Minor Planet Center in Cambridge, Mass., misstated the estimated density of asteroids in the asteroid belt. His updated estimate is one asteroid per 33 quadrillion cubic miles (not 110 trillion cubic miles), which is a cube 320,000 miles on a side (not 48,000), and that is equivalent to the volume of 120,000 Earths, not 400. (In the initial calculation, he used the wrong number for the thickness of the asteroid belt.)”—New York Times, April 5
News of the Tautological
“Long-Term Unemployed Still Recovering from Recession”—headline, Economics21.org, April 4
Black and White and 9 All Over
If you like journalism, you’ll love this story, from the Washington Post’s Tom Jackman:
Reporter Hilde Kate Lysiak got the tip early Saturday afternoon that there was heavy police activity on Ninth Street. She hustled over with her pen and camera, as any good reporter would, and soon she posted something short online, beating all her competitors. Then, working the neighbors and the cops, she nailed down her scoop with a full-length story and this headline:
“EXCLUSIVE: MURDER ON NINTH STREET!”
The online story not only beat the local daily paper, but she also included a short video from the crime scene, assuring viewers that “I’m working hard on this investigation.”
Then Monday came and Hilde had to go back to third grade. She is 9.
As the editor and publisher of the Orange Street News, in her hometown of Selinsgrove, Pa., about 50 miles north of Harrisburg, Lysiak is a dedicated multi-media journalist who loves going after crime stories. Her father is an author and former New York Daily News reporter who took Hilde to his newsroom and to stories he covered around New York and hooked her on the rush of chasing news.
Jackman’s piece is accompanied by a video in which Hilde responds to critics, one of whom says: “Nine-year-old girls should be playing with dolls, not trying to be reporters.”
Meanwhile, Brian Williams has been appearing on MSNBC and Dan Rather on CNN. Those guys should be playing with dolls.
For more “Best of the Web” from The Wall Street Journal’s James Taranto click here.
