When it comes media, few things are more valuable than a good editor. However, even the best editors are still human, which means mistakes do happen. And lucky for us, some of those mistakes have hilarious results.
At first glance you might think these examples are from The Onion, but these newspaper blunders are 100 percent real which makes them that much more comical. Hopefully you laugh as much as we did.
What’s the sound of one hand clapping?
One-armed man applauds the kindness of strangers
The philosophical debate is over! The answer is “applause” according to this headline blunder from Tulsa World. Perhaps this play on words was no mistake, as the news outlet hasn’t changed the headline since it was published. Let’s pause for a moment and applaud that level of confidence.
[Read more: Fixing Rio’s Olympic sized PR problem!]
Unintentional potty humor
The Boston Globe publishes typo of the day
On July 15, 2015, The Boston Globe tweeted: “Ed Reinhold, FBI, says FBI has investifarted about 70 leads already.
A correction was made, but it was too late. The mistake inspired a slew of response tweets. We agree with Greg Walsh’s pithy response: “@BostonGlobe Something stinks about this story.”
When placeholders go horribly wrong
“Think of a headline 56 pt bold he… It takes a lot of time to lay out a paper. When a deadline is looming, people rush and mistakes are made. Unfortunately, a headline placeholder was added to this article and never replaced. “Think of a headline” should be replaced with “Find a better editor.”
Headlines that state the obvious
Oh the joy of headlines! Sometimes you only have a few words to convey what the story is about. However, these obvious headlines leave something to be desired.
[Read more: Avoid these infographic mistakes!]
The undeniable value of spell-check
Such wonderful news that Mississippi’s literacy rates are improving. But this headline proves there’s still a long way to go. Use that spell-check often! It’s a lifesaver for writers and editors, especially after a long day and your eyes are starting to haze.
