Daily mail wrongly announcing Amanda Knox Guilty on appeal

[mikerr]

The Daily Mail inexplicably jumped the gun and wrongly announced that Amanda Knox was found guilty in her appeal against the murder of British student Meredith Kercher.

The article, which appeared online at 8.50pm UK time and was still available 25 minutes later, stated that Amanda Knox’s appeal against her conviction had been rejected by the Italian court of six jurors and two judges.

The story included “reactions” from prosecutors who were said to be delighted with the news that Knox would be returning to jail.

http://whatculture.com/news/daily-ma...-in-appeal.php

pre-writing an article is one thing, making up reactions and quotes is another!

[Pob255]

Daily mail . . . nuff said.

[Larkspeed]

I don't understand how the daily mail even stays in print it's that bad of a newspaper, and I use the term loosely

[Lucio]

It's so very typical of the mainstream press, under pressure to deliver news first. Chances are they had both articles prepared and went to press with the wrong version. A little more worrying are the reactions though, they could have been questions asked hypothetically (so if she is found guilty how will you feel?) or they could be completely made up. If it's the latter it's one more nail in the printed news' coffin

[kalniel]

Well it got you to write about them, so win.

[mikerr]

Thing is it wasn't just the daily mail - a few others including the guardian also did a similar mistake,
as they all had articles prewritten.

They all wanted to get the news published first, and when judge initially said she was guilty (on a defamation charge), they all shot first - later realising she was found not guilty of murder.

[razer121]

Surely making a pre written scripted paper would make them...well completely full of bull and not allowed to carry on with thier crap! no wonder its called the daily...fail

[Saracen]

Surely making a pre written scripted paper would make them...well completely full of bull and not allowed to carry on with thier crap! no wonder its called the daily...fail

Not really.

Commercial pressures are such that they all want to be first with the story, and when the story is largely fact-based, you can pre-write much of it, because it'll be the same whatever the verdict. You can pre-write leading up to the current point in time, you can then pre-write your reaction, two versions, one going each way, and you can include boilerplate place-holders for quotes and reactions. All you then have to do is plug in the actual quotes, reactions and names of those quoting and reacting, and you're ready to go, and ready far faster than if you wait for the verdict before writing the first word of the lead-in.

Where I part company with what the Mail appears to have been caught doing is making up quotes. That takes it from news reporting into the realm of, at best, fiction, and at worst, misrepresentation and/or libel. Putting in place-holders is one thing, but making up reactions is something else altogether.

[TheAnimus]

Thing is it wasn't just the daily mail - a few others including the guardian also did a similar mistake,
as they all had articles prewritten.

Ah, but you won't find people blaming them, for it, turns out your only allowed to criticise the evil papers.

Where I part company with what the Mail appears to have been caught doing is making up quotes. That takes it from news reporting into the realm of, at best, fiction, and at worst, misrepresentation and/or libel. Putting in place-holders is one thing, but making up reactions is something else altogether.

Which when they claim it to be news is absolutely sickening.

In the same way retractions were always printed on page 28, in the least prominent place possible, despite the story being a front page headline.

[Saracen]

....

In the same way retractions were always printed on page 28, in the least prominent place possible, despite the story being a front page headline.

Agreed. But that's tabloids for you. It's not quite "Freddy Star ate my hamster", or a 'factual' account of an alien abduction/seduction, but it's not far off.

[Whiternoise]

I don't understand how the daily mail even stays in print it's that bad of a newspaper, and I use the term loosely

The Mail exists to make you angry, that's all its there for. People like ranting and the Mail does an excellent job of fuelling the fire.