It can happen to the best of reporters when on deadline, but it can be lesson as well.
On Wednesday, Donovan Slack, a contributor to the portion of the Politico website that is all things President Barack Obama, was on the ground with the commander in chief before his speech in Wisconsin. And in a post, Slack offered readers a glimpse of the setting before the president’s speech:
It’s very clear what side President Obama is on here in Wisconsin,” Slack wrote. “Behind the stage where he will speak today are two flags: an American one, as usual, and right alongside it — and a flag for the local union, Wisconsin 1848.
The problem: The flag wasn’t a union flag but the state flag of Wisconsin. Since the mistake was pointed out, the URL that pointed to Slack’s original post has been changed, and directs to Politico’s homepage instead. And there was no corresponding correction. The Google cache of that original post, however, remains”
Rachel Smolkin, Politico White House editor, told The Daily Caller that a correction had been issued. However, it was added to a different story posted later in the day at the bottom of its second page:
“CORRECTION: An earlier 44 blog post about Obama’s visit to Wisconsin incorrectly identified the Wisconsin state flag.”