Do you tell Tech Media when they got a story wrong? Steve Jobs did

This past week I was at Intel Developer Forum in my media roll as a blogger.  I was able to catch up with some good writers who many of your read often.  At a business dinner I was commenting on a story written by one of the writers and their choice of a particular source.  We both agreed that a story’s use of that particular source left a bad taste in our mouth.  We were drinking a nice cabernet from Nickel & Nickel so taste was part of the conversation.

Nickel & Nickel winery, located in Oakville, Napa Valley, is dedicated exclusively to producing 100 percent varietal, single-vineyard wines that best express the distinct personality of each vineyard. Established by the partners of Far Niente in 1997, Nickel & Nickel is focused on producing single-vineyard Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon from the appellation's most significant AVAs.

Some read what is in the media as if they are facts.  Knowing who the writers are I read as if they are stories which are limited by who the sources are.

2

a :  an account of incidents or events

 

b :  a statement regarding the facts pertinent to a situation in question

 

c :  anecdote; especially :  an amusing one

3

a :  a fictional narrative shorter than a novel; specifically : short story

 

b :  the intrigue or plot of a narrative or dramatic work

4

:  a widely circulated rumor

NYTimes has a story on how he limits the use of technology in his house, and the story starts on something more insightful.

When Steve Jobs was running Apple, he was known to call journalists to either pat them on the back for a recent article or, more often than not, explain how they got it wrong. I was on the receiving end of a few of those calls.

I’ll regularly reach out to some of the writers I know well to help them research a story, and who I would contact for sources that are credible by peers.

Most people don’t know how to help the media tell better stories.  They have PR companies who manage the media. That is something that is another story, and can be discussed over a nice bottle of wine. :-)