Newsweek Dragged for Using Unconfirmed Police Scanner Info to Report on YouTube Shooting
The beleaguered political magazine Newsweek has made yet another mistake, as the outlet published an article based on police scanners suggesting dozens of people were shot in today’s YouTube headquarters shooting.
While the actual number of injuries from the shooting is still unknown, Newsweek made the classic media mistake of trying to be first to report on a tragedy in their post on the shooting. Rather than waiting for the information to come out like other media outlets, the magazine tweeted out, “Breaking: The San Bruno Police Department scanner said 37 people were transported to nearby hospitals after an active shooter situation was reported at YouTube’s headquarters in California.”
However, as many media figures were quick to point out, basing injury counts on police scanner activity goes against all notions of journalistic integrity, since that information is not confirmed in any real sense. Upon realizing this mistake, Newsweek followed up with an update saying that the number of people wounded is most likely much lower than their initial report suggests:
“Update” pic.twitter.com/wrcxvmKAeU
— Justin Fenton (@justin_fenton) April 3, 2018
They eventually took down the piece, but the damage was done.
With this being far from the first time that Newsweek — a company in the middle of an existential crisis — has gotten the facts wrong in their sensational reporting, journalists from other outlets quickly pounced on the easy target:
newsweek went full laura loomer. never go full laura loomer pic.twitter.com/unWji1tMr4
— John Whitehouse (@existentialfish) April 3, 2018
BURN NEWSWEEK BURN https://t.co/ZtEdANVfJf
— Kyle Feldscher (@Kyle_Feldscher) April 3, 2018
Please don’t use or trust information from a scanner. I’ll tell you guys a story since this hasn’t stuck yet—one time Waco PD spent hours searching for a drowning man. It turned out the caller had seen a duck. Those listening thought a man had drowned. For hours. https://t.co/LiXNyPohs1
— Olivia Messer ? (@OliviaMesser) April 3, 2018
You should unfollow journalists and news organizations spreading rumors and fear.
cc: @Newsweek
— David M. Perry (@Lollardfish) April 3, 2018
I’m not sure what publication these tweets are from, since Newsweek ceased publication in 2012. https://t.co/f1Mda4Ge5b
— Josh Barro (@jbarro) April 3, 2018
If you were following Newsweek for news still for some reason, now would be a good time to stop doing that!
— Matt Berman (@Mr_Berman) April 3, 2018
JFC, don’t report the scanner! You guys should know better.
— Clara Jeffery (@ClaraJeffery) April 3, 2018
Newsweek is tweeting things another org’s staff writer heard on the police scanner.
Don’t do that.
— Brandon Wall (@Walldo) April 3, 2018
friendly reminder that scanner traffic is unconfirmed and wow newsweek did you really just do that
— erin mccann | subscribe to The Times (@mccanner) April 3, 2018
[image via screengrab]
