On Tuesday, the Alligator ran a story on the front page titled “Math whiz has mind that won’t turn off.”
Upon its publication, we learned significant parts of the story were presented in a false light and did not meet the accuracy standards our paper strives to uphold. Incorrect figures were given, subjects were presented in an exaggerated way and overall context fell victim to sensationalism.
We would like to offer an apology to you, the reader, for publishing something that did not meet these standards.
While it would be easy to sweep this under the rug and hope the ever-constant news cycle would allow us the convenience to back away from this unfortunate episode, we feel that would not be fair to you, who turn to our paper every day for news.
We cannot, in good conscience, shrug our shoulders and say, “Mistakes were made.” WE made the mistakes.
Before publishing the story, we should have examined the story thoroughly to make sure every fact, detail and description was illustrated in the most accurate light possible. Simply put, the story that appeared in Tuesday’s edition should not have run as written.
We, as your publication, failed you.
Now, we will press forward. We cannot undo the damage this story may have done to your sense of trust with us. We cannot promise you this is the last mistake our publication will make.
We do fall into error from time to time.
What we can promise you is that we will try to provide you with the best information possible that is fair, accurate and balanced.
We do not operate with any personal or political agenda. We do this because you deserve the truth.
The members of the Editorial Board are Paul Runnestrand, Elizabeth Behrman, Cynthia Despres and Josh Saval.
Editor's note: This letter from the editors refers to this article.
