Spot the Gaffe
Test your error-catching skills

Let's have a bit of fun and play editor. Below are real examples of gaffes which have appeared in copy in recent months. Fortunately, all of the examples were caught and corrected before the stories appeared in print.

There are occasions, however, when gaffes do make it into the paper. Humans are not perfect. No newspaper is perfect. We always help to move the process closer to perfection when we file copy that is as free from errors as possible.

Years ago, I remember one reporter who filed copy so messy - we're talking dozens of typos in a 450-word story - that it was a challenge to keep up. Editors would catch 35 typos, but miss two others . . . and usually those two would appear in print. Our eagle-eyed readers would spot them and chastize us once again for our lack of proofreading ability.

"Don't you people have proofreaders?" they'd shout at us on the phone.

"It's hard to catch them all when there are so many in one story," I'd tell the managing editor.

In the end, it didn't matter. Newspapers are supposed to be perfect, remember.

Yes, we have proofreaders. But we also have editors and reporters. When we make mistakes, we depend on others to catch them. That's a nice safety net. There is a better way to move the process along.

We all work towards achieving a high standard when we file clean copy.

When you don't know a word, look it up instead of guessing. When you finish your work, don't file it and forget it. Re-read it.

Interestingly, you'll notice how I didn't include spellchecking your work. Yes, always spellcheck your work. But as you'll see below, spellcheck wouldn't have caught many of the following examples.

Have some fun with the following quiz, but let it serve as a reminder about the importance of double-checking copy. How many errors can you catch?

1. With pulleys, stationary biking systems, steppers, weights and automatic bicycling machine, the residents said it's hard to get board.

2. Two snow days wrecked havoc on the exam week.

3. To make the project Internet saive and get students thinking in worldwide terms, students logged on and began surfing the web.

4. "Grassroots is a government initiative to help encourage children to intergrate websites and the Internet into their learning and work."

5. The woman said she believes the final decision was made based on Tucker's breed and not the dog's actual temperment.

6. Heading into the regional championships, Diehl and teammate James Riddle were upping the anti, beating the record.

7. The group plays mostly traditional Scottish tunes, but their repetoire also includes modern adaptations, including Theme from Titanic.

8. While some are in agreeance, it has raised fears about where Delhi stands on the priority list.

9. For the Childs, donning a Canadian flag on there front lawn is a matter of pride.

10. Moments before 10 a.m., a hearst driven by a young couple pulls into the parking lot and drops off two large bags of cat food.

11. For some high school sports purists it may be blastfamy but not anymore.

12. "Farmers are tightening the reigns, which means they're not buying as much."

13. Most golfers have already renewed memberships at there clubs, but all three are still accepting more memberships.

14. "This is actually one of the smallest steeple's we've removed," said Chad Sanderson, project co-ordinator with Empire. "This is going to be fairly easy to do and we don't expect any glitches."

15. The Day Away programs of Senior Support Services has marked an end to it's Incredible Shrinking Coffee Party.

16. "For every seed that we sew we want to be able to ship a tree."

17. "Are we still looking for members?" said club member Pat Brady. "Are frogs water repellant?"

18. Rising costs of living are effecting everyone, including seniors.

19. "The federal government acknowledges that it's efforts to reduce smoking have had an impact on tobacco growers," Speller said. "The government is working to help adversely affected growers."

20. Esselment said it is sometimes true what they say about pets and their owners. "If you look around you can see a fair amount of pets who bare an eerie resemblance to their owners," said Esselment.

Answers

1. With pulleys, stationary biking systems, steppers, weights and automatic bicycling machine, the residents said it's hard to get bored.

2. Two snow days wreaked havoc on the exam week.

3. To make the project Internet savvy and get students thinking in worldwide terms, students logged on and began surfing the web.

4. "Grassroots is a government initiative to help encourage children to integrate websites and the Internet into their learning and work."

5. The woman said she believes the final decision was made based on Tucker's breed and not the dog's actual temperament.

6. Heading into the regional championships, Diehl and teammate James Riddle were upping the ante, beating the record.

7. The group plays mostly traditional Scottish tunes, but their repertoire also includes modern adaptations, including Theme from Titanic.

8. While some are in agreement, it has raised fears about where Delhi stands on the priority list.

9. For the Childs, (putting) a Canadian flag on their front lawn is a matter of pride.

10. Moments before 10 a.m., a hearse driven by a young couple pulls into the parking lot and drops off two large bags of cat food.

11. For some high school sports purists it may be blasphemy but not anymore.

12. "Farmers are tightening the reins, which means they're not buying as much."

13. Most golfers have already renewed memberships at their clubs, but all three are still accepting more memberships.

14. "This is actually one of the smallest steeples we've removed," said Chad Sanderson, project coordinator with Empire. "This is going to be fairly easy to do and we don't expect any glitches."

15. The Day Away programs of Senior Support Services has marked an end to its Incredible Shrinking Coffee Party.

16. "For every seed that we sow we want to be able to ship a tree."

17. "Are we still looking for members?" said club member Pat Brady. "Are frogs water repellent?"

18. Rising costs of living are affecting everyone, including seniors.

19. "The federal government acknowledges that its efforts to reduce smoking have had an impact on tobacco growers," Speller said. "The government is working to help adversely affected growers."

20. Esselment said it is sometimes true what they say about pets and their owners. "If you look around you can see a fair amount of pets who bear an eerie resemblance to their owners," said Esselment.