I received a link to an AP wire story in the Washington Times about the impact of the fire at our museum (National Capital). I worked with the writer in a long phone interview, and he also spent time on site with the other folks quoted in the article. I was very disappointed in the content of the article, until I followed up on Sandy's link to the same story in the Baltimore Sun. What a difference 30+ miles can make! The Sun article appears to be the full-length article, while the one in the Times has been edited (butchered). My favorite misquote in the Times is "We lost some unique cars," the museum's William Blackburn said as he was parking a yellow Dutch street car, one of the last trolleys that plied D.C. streets in the 1960s. The Sun verision correctly states that Blackburn was speaking as he was parking the yellow Dutch street car next to one of the last trolleys that plied D.C. streets in the 1960s.. Oh, my.Hopefully our name and phone number are correctly listed in the Washington Times article.Wesley

Wes, I am shocked, shocked I say, to find out misleading information might be eminating from Washington DC. Who could have ever imagined such a revolting development?Perhaps Baltimore journalists are more careful in deference to their home grown patron saint of journalism, HL Mencken.dave

Some things to keep in mind when dealing with my colleagues in the news media:1) If there is a way to screw up the facts and make you look like an idiot, a news reporter will find it.2) Just as my Editor has sent a gearheaded railfan (me) to cover a story about gardeners, other editors will send gardeners to cover a story about trains.3) You don't necessarily have to have a working brain to write news, just a working tape recorder.4) The above effects are squared for radio over print, and the resulting radio effects are then cubed for the effect of TV news.Long live freedom of the pest... er, press!

Having been both the reporter and the reported-upon over the years, I can note that there's nothing wrong with asking the reporter, editor, or publication for an opportunity to review a proof of the article for factual correction--and emphasize that you want ONLY a fact-check, not a chance to edit or change the article. I've corrected and been corrected, most typically minor details of the sort of "tax base" instead of "tax" or finding out that the former mayor is still indeed the mayor, or the fact that the two WVN locos are indeed en route to Elkins, W. Va. but will probably spend two or three years in Belington, W. Va. en route!Obviously there's not much chance of getting the chance to review such a piece if they're covering, say, the derailment of 611 in the Dismal Swamp as it happens. But most articles we see on rail preservation are of the "evergreen" type that certainly allows time for fact-checking.