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Earlier this month, Parade magazine gave readers a taste of the now-lost time when news traveled slowly and events often overtook information. Staring from the cover of the tabloid’s Jan. 6 issue, a defiant Benazir Bhutto declared, “I am what the terrorists most fear.”
Her appearance was a surprise to everyone but “the terrorists,” who had murdered the Pakistani politician 10 days earlier and answered unequivocally the question Parade’s headline asked its readers: “Is Benazir Bhutto America’s Best Hope Against al-Qaeda?”
Makes you long for the much-maligned 24-hour news cycle.
According to Publisher Randy Siegel, Parade had put the Bhutto issue to bed a full six days before her Dec. 27 assassination. The 400-plus newspapers that deliver Parade to 32 million readers all elected to include the magazine with its painfully outdated cover story.
“Every week it costs several million dollars to print and distribute Parade,” Siegel told NPR. But he went on to explain that money was not the reason he chose to let the issue stand. “We believe that what Benazir Bhutto had to say should be heard and this story deserved to be told.”
Perhaps Parade columnist/super genius Marilyn vos Savant will calculate for us the odds of a publication going to press with a seriously out-of-date story, of betting wrong against a deadline, or just plain blowing it when it comes to life and death. As of our deadline, here are seven more examples of ill-timed news.
2006 – Good News, Bad News
Insult was added to tragedy after a blast trapped 13 coal miners underground in Sago, West Virginia. One miner was found dead after the cave-in on the morning of Monday, Jan. 2. But on Tuesday night news spread that the remaining 12 miners had been found alive. West Virginia Governor Joe Manchin called it a miracle, families celebrated, and newspapers around the country published sensitive, salt-of-the-earth stories about the soon-to-be-rescued miners.
Three hours later, the celebrating relatives were informed that 11 of the 12 lost miners actually were dead. A witness said one relative lunged for an official and had to be wrestled to the ground.
The mine owner, International Coal Group (ICG), said it knew within 20 minutes that initial reports were incorrect, but waited until it had all the facts before issuing a clarification. ICG President Ben Hatfield blamed the confusion on “stray cell phone conversations.” People overhearing bits of phone calls spread the incorrect information, he explained.
1982 – Requiem for Sgt. Fish
Actor Abe Vigoda was just 54 when he landed the role of elderly cop Sgt. Fish on the ‘70s hit TV show Barney Miller. Vigoda had played a recurring role on the creepy soap opera Dark Shadows in the 1960s, and appeared in the first two Godfather films. Perhaps because he was still together with his wife, or wasn’t one of the 100 Sexiest Men Alive, in 1982 People magazine referred to him as “the late Abe Vigoda.” It became a running joke — Vigoda even posed for a photograph sitting in a coffin, holding a copy of the magazine. A quick check of the “Abe Vigoda Status” website this week reassures us that the actor is alive.
2007 – Oh Wilbur!
Want the facts? Opinion? Truth? Or none of the above? Parade’s “Personality Parade” on Feb. 11, 2007, included a question about the health of Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro, who had shattered a leg at the Preakness. The horse underwent surgery, and “since then, his comfort has improved, and he’s stable,” “Personality Parade” assured the letter writer. After the issue went to press (curse those three-week deadlines!), Barbaro’s health deteriorated, and the horse was euthanized on Jan. 29.
Continue Reading…
So why hasn’t magazine publishing caught up with modern times? I understand that some stories take time to research and you run the risk of irrelevance before getting the mag’s issue laid out and sent to the printer. What I don’t understand is why there is such a huge lead time. 3 weeks? Can’t modern technology do better than that?
Along those lines, why does it take up to 6-8 weeks to get a new subscriber their first issue? How is it still so inefficient?
posted by Scott from Cincy on 1-18-2008 at 12:22 pm
I saw the Bhutto Parade issue and just thought “uh oh…someone screwed up big time.” Personally I thought it should have been pulled, but…
posted by beth on 1-18-2008 at 2:08 pm
My local paper (Philadelphia Inquirer) ran small notices at the bottom of the front page on Thursday, Friday and Saturday explaining the lead time situation with Parade.
I have a question that I’ve always wanted to ask Marilyn:
If you were up to your neck in a barrell full of shit and someone threw a baseball at your head, would you duck?
posted by fixedgear on 1-18-2008 at 2:32 pm
I admit, when I first saw the Parade cover I thought someone screwed up. But then I started to think about it more and came to the conclusion that maybe they ran the story as some sort of defiant gesture towards terrorists. Like an “even when she’s gone her words and her ideals are still alive” sort of thing.
posted by David on 1-18-2008 at 3:59 pm
I had the same off-topic question as Scott. Why does it take two months to begin a magazine subscription. I would imagine they just enter you into their database, and you would be sent the next issue along with everyone else. I can only imagine they hold back names until a set date to maybe indicate a need to increase production or something. Anyone work in publishing and have an idea what causes such a delay?
posted by puddle on 1-18-2008 at 4:21 pm
When I read my local newspaper the day after Bhutto’s it clearly stated that Parade had already made the decision to run with the story. It even had something along the lines of, you can learn more about Bhutto and her life in an article that Parade is still printing. I think her death is irrelevant, it was still an amazing story that had to be told. Plus it showed how her death was such a tragedy to the world, not yet another person killed by terrorists. I would have run with the story and I am happy that Parade made that decision too.
posted by Charlie on 1-18-2008 at 4:26 pm
I think Parade handled the Bhutto issue just fine, to be honest. They had what amounted to the last words of a very influential figure–what good would it have done to pull the article?
A few months back, I was on a flight, don’t remember the airline. Their in-flight magazine had somehow managed to get one of their writers a conversation with Kurt Vonnegut before he died. The magazine’s response was to announce, in at least three separate places, that THIS ISSUE CONTAINS THE LAST INTERVIEW WITH KURT VONNEGUT. LOOK AT US, WE ARE SO COOL.
At least Parade didn’t trumpet it. Even if that came from circumstance (since they’d already gone to press) it’s refreshing.
posted by Rachel on 1-18-2008 at 4:46 pm
Between walking the picket line & blogging about the WGA strike, feature film writer and blogger extraordinaire John August, had this to say about that Parade Magazine issue…
I’ve pretty much given up on my campaign to mock and/or eliminate Parade Magazine. It’s an embarrassing publication that no self-respecting American newspaper should include, but it’s not worth the time to regularly dissect its inanity. Particularly when it can embarrass itself so well.
This morning’s Parade Magazine (January 6th, 2008) cover article is on Benazir Bhutto — a refreshingly newsworthy subject for the magazine. After all, Bhutto was assassinated on December 27th, and her death has brought new concerns about the future of Pakistan and the region.
However, the cover headline asks an unsettling question: “Is Benazir Bhutto America’s best hope against al-Qaeda?”
Gosh, I hope not. Considering she died ten days ago.
The article by Gail Sheehy was written before the assassination. That’s okay. But the printed version makes no clarification whatsoever about what’s happened in the meantime: in Parade-land, Bhutto is still alive, racing towards the election. She’s our best hope!
Obviously, Parade is printed in advance. From the website: “The assassination of Pakistan’s Benazir Bhutto on Dec. 27 occurred after PARADE’s Jan. 6 issue went to press.”
But does Parade really need to be printed ten days in advance? Did the editors spend the last week and a half sitting on their hands, hoping their average reader would be so clueless to world events so as not to notice that the subject of their lead article was gunned down for the world to see? (Sadly, the editors’ gamble may be reasonable.)
The web enables print media to amend and expand their reporting, which Parade did to some degree. From the site: “After her assassination, PARADE immediately posted the entire interview online,” which is a great start, but then, “and Sheehy appeared on network and cable TV news shows to discuss her face-to-face conversations with Bhutto.”
So you put your journalist on television to talk about the interview, but then declined to frame the article in context for your publication?
I’ve worked in media enough to know that nothing is impossible. They could have fixed the cover. They could have added an introductory paragraph pointing readers to the web for more information. And failing that, they could have wrapped the issue with an explanatory note.
But they would have only done that if they were an actual news publication, rather than a crappy info-tainment tabloid pretending to be one.
My beef about their “long lead time” excuse is that the insert is included in daily newspapers across the country, which creates the expectation that it’s at least somewhat timely. Which it’s not.
And so the onus really falls on newspapers like the Los Angeles Times, which need to be proactive about how they’re going handle such errors. After all, the printed copy of Parade says “Los Angeles Times” at the top, in the newspaper’s logotype. In simple fact, the January 6th, 2008 edition of the Los Angeles Times says Benazir Bhutto is still alive. That’s embarrassing.
You can read more at John August’s official site.
posted by Renee Walker on 1-18-2008 at 4:55 pm
Why does it take so long to get a new magazine subscription? I am still waiting for a mental floss to show up since I purchased it for my boyfriend in early December…”YAY I bought a subsription to Mental Floss, here is a box of air that you can fill with a magazine in 6-8 weeks woo-hoo!” Not such a fanatastic gift I guess…
Just pokin fun!
posted by Brandi on 1-18-2008 at 4:55 pm
I have become a reader of The Wall Street Journal, and in addition to staying on top of current events they also juxtapose them against stories that are relevant to the stories that are coming to the limelight today. For most of the stories reported on in this article, they were just stupid mix ups, but with the Bhutto story, there seems to be some prophetic truth laid out in that she said that to the terrorists, she was feared. Al- Qaeda proved her correct in that they killed her. People do not generally go to the trouble of killing people who are ineffectual.
posted by Paul on 1-18-2008 at 4:58 pm
I think the Bhutto article was fine. I noticed it was posted after her death as well, but at the top was a message saying something like.. When I interviewed XX on such and such date, I think people reading the article understood why it was left as it was.
posted by Derek on 1-18-2008 at 5:49 pm
Maybe she’ll come back from the dead!!
:D
posted by Moon on 1-18-2008 at 6:47 pm
Another great media mix up: The day after the Titanic sank, one newspaper reported that ALL passengers aboard it survived!
posted by Sahar on 1-18-2008 at 7:44 pm
I work in the publishing industry, and can give some explanation about the delay between ordering a subscription and getting your first issue. First, there is always a time lag for the data entry and computer processing of an order, even when you enter data online. Then print orders are often due to the press well in advance of printing so that paper and other supplies are on hand. Publishers don’t order a lot of extra copies—it wastes money and resources—so if your order arrives after a print order goes in, a copy isn’t available for you until the next order.
posted by Marko on 1-18-2008 at 9:46 pm
What about the one where fox news incorrectly broke the news of Bush winning the Florida vote in 2000. That mistake wasn’t corrected til…wait a second!
posted by drephil on 1-19-2008 at 4:54 am
surely that website on Abe Vigoda cannot still be active and true…he would be 100 + years old?????????????
posted by olal on 1-19-2008 at 12:13 pm
oops…………my bad….
see where Vigoda was born in 1921 so he is only 86……should have used my calculator/ipod/cellphone to figure 54 in 73 equals 80 something in 07….not 100 something…
posted by olal on 1-19-2008 at 12:17 pm
SI turns around their issue in a week why does parade take so darn long? If something happens on Sunday and I can read about it on Thursday I should be able to read about stuff that happened a week and a half before.
posted by Brendan on 1-19-2008 at 3:07 pm
I was wondering why that PARADE issue was all messed up…
posted by anon on 1-19-2008 at 3:45 pm
kudos dave, enjoyed the article very much.
posted by draveman on 1-19-2008 at 10:04 pm
Even better that the magazine subscription question: why is it that when you subscribe to a magazine (and get your first issue 6-8 weeks later), you also start getting those “time to renew” notices when you still have a year or so left on your subscription?! Am I the only one bugged by that?
posted by kate on 1-20-2008 at 6:06 am
I’m with you, Kate.
I renewed a mag subscription for THREE years in December. Last week, I get some “special renewal offer” from them. But only if I act fast!!!
It kind of reminds me of when you give a homeless man some money on the way into the store, and then on the way out it’s like you never gave him a thing.
I think they just take as much money up front as they possibly can.
posted by Sean on 1-24-2008 at 9:40 pm
I work at a newspaper, and here’s why Parade has a 3-week lead time before it actually appears in the paper:
Once Parade is printed, the magazine must be shipped to the newspapers that carry it. They’re delivered by truck. Once Parade gets to the newspaper, then it is inserted into pre-print sections - sections such as features and comics that are printed on the press a few days before the Sunday paper comes out. On Saturday nights, the pre-printed sections are then combined with the sections containing fresh news (like the A-section, metro and sports) and the papers are delivered on Sundays. So, the three-week lead time is needed for Parade to be printed, shipped, inserted into pre-print sections then inserted into the final paper.
posted by Megs on 1-25-2008 at 1:08 am
A newspaper did a story about the wonderful, close-knit, big happy family in my neighborhood. In reality, the family was the scourge of the neighborhood. Hassled the neighbors, made threats, damaged property. Small children wandering around and spewing every 4 letter word that you ever heard. Problems with the police. People moved out of the neighborhood because of them.
For some reason, a newspaper reporter did a story about the suicide of a man who was a friend of my uncle. The story made it look as if it was my uncle’s fault by getting a depressed man drunk. The friend was already drunk when my uncle got to his house. My 5 foot 5 uncle tried to get the gun away from his 6 foot 8 bodybuilder friend. My uncle requested a retraction, I don’t know what became of it.
A paper I delivered had mistakes in every story that I wasfamiliar with..
I don’t hold much value to newspapers.
posted by Tdave on 1-25-2008 at 4:13 am
Tdave is right…I saw a bumper sticker that said “The Media is to news what a bumper sticker is to philosophy” Right On!
posted by gayle on 2-21-2008 at 8:57 am
The Main Stream Media — which really is no longer mainstream as it does not reflect or instruct the mainstream — should stop even pretending that they are a source information to the public. They constantly need WE THE PEOPLE to inform THEM. God bless the internet. If it had never come into being, and great online zines like Mentalfloss (and this enlightening article by David H.) weren’t around, we wouldn’t know shit.
posted by Leslie on 2-21-2008 at 4:35 pm
Dave Ross once said, “The news media will never be a substitute for independent critical thinking.” People have to use their brains to decide whether the information presented to them is correct and valuable. As for the Bhutto Parade thing, Parade probably could AT LEAST have switched out the covers, or newspapers that ran it should have either made a note about the issue in a front-page teaser or a section wrap. Those who didn’t dropped the ball for their readers.
posted by Cady on 2-22-2008 at 2:35 am
If I recall, mental_floss had a little thing about Gerald Ford that said he was still alive, when in fact he had just died.
posted by Tyler on 3-8-2008 at 1:57 pm
Abe Vigoda is alive?
posted by jacktheweed on 11-26-2008 at 1:54 pm