Has anyone asked the Pittsburgh Gazette for a correction?
They'll print their retraction, on page C-24.
arodgers@post-gazette.com
Yes. I emailed Ms. Rogers a few days ago, and I even got a reply. Here is our exchange:
Hello,I am writing with regard to some incorrect information contained in an article you wrote recently. The article is titled Homeland Security won't let Red Cross deliver food, and is found here:
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/05246/565143.stm
You wrote:
"As the National Guard delivered food to the New Orleans convention center yesterday, American Red Cross officials said that federal emergency management authorities would not allow them to do the same."
The Red Cross has now stated that it was, in fact, the Louisiana State Homeland Security Department, not "federal emergency management officials", who denied them access to provide aid in New Orleans.
If you have concern about the accuracy of your reporting, please call the Red Cross to confirm. (As an aside, the Salvation Army has also now confirmed that the LA state officials also denied them access to the city.)
I look forward to the prominent publication of your retraction and correction.
Sincerely,
*******************
Dear **********,
Due to e-mails such as yours I called the Red Cross again to make sure I had not misunderstood them in our conversations about Homeland Security and FEMA. (The F stands for Federal). They said my story was not in error.
After many calls to the federal Dept. of Homeland Security, both before I wrote the article and after it ran, their spokeswoman finally returned my call. She had no idea whether the federal dept. was a party to the decision to keep the Red Cross out. She said she would get back to me after she checked it out, and I am waiting to hear from her.
The Louisiana Department of Homeland Security and and Emergency Preparedness is currently impossible to reach because whatever phone lines are working down there are overwhelmed.
If the story is in error I will be more than happy to write a correction, but the Red Cross stands by what it originally told me.
Sincerely,
Ann
She stands by her story. She just didn't talk to the right people at the RC.
Yet.