I  don’t believe this event was held at the White House, was it?…

A Washingtonian

You’re right. We had plenty of journalists at the thing, so this was a bit embarrassing. We corrected: GBU Editor

REUTERS photo by Jonathan Ernst  

Alaska’s 1st female governor gives birth to son

ANCHORAGE, Alabama (Reuters) - Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin gave birth to a baby boy early on Friday, becoming the second U.S. governor to have a baby while serving in office.

Great atricle today on Governor Palin. That is of course, with the exception of opening the piece up with a preschool mistake. Might I suggest a small gift of a U.S. States for Dummies book for the author?

Thank you, I still enjoy your news service, over any other.

Len H.

This was a sad combination of human and technical error. I’m happy to say that at no point did any human being here really think Anchorage is in Alabama, so no thank you on the book idea. We corrected, but not before people noticed: GBU Editor

 (Photo Handout)

Young Pennsylvania voters take a shine to Obama

I think a news headline about taking a “shine” to a man of color is considered in poor taste, at best.

Mark S.

Please reseach Black folklore and historical use of the term “Shine” that your use in the same sentence with Sen Obama. I think you will find it, if not inappropriate, at least a pretty odd choice of words.

Tony R. Several readers pointed this out to us. There are vast numbers of people who do not know the slang meaning of the word: “Disparaging and offensive. A black person.”

When our editors became aware of it, the headline was changed: GBU Editor

REUTERS photo by Tim Shaffer

Please quit promoting John McCain. Your bias toward him and Republicans is clear. There is no need to frame it in an “article” that is a McCain promotion.

I read Reuters because it seemed to report the financial and economic news in an unbiased way. What happened?

C.R.D.

Can you at least make some effort to hide the Democratic slant of your website?

Internet Lawyer

Thanks for your respective comments. Maybe you should talk to each other. Your e-mails arrived five minutes apart: GBU Editor 

Obama: REUTERS photo by Tim Shaffer

McCain: REUTERS photo by Philippe Wojazer

U.S Democratic race over? Clinton doesn’t think so

WASHINGTON, March 27 (Reuters) - Somebody forgot to tell Hillary Clinton the Democratic presidential race is over and Barack Obama won.

Clearly you need to correct the opening of your article. When last I checked, there were ten states that haven’t yet voted for a candidate. A presidential race is “over” when either a candidate has dropped out of the race, a candidate has earned the required delegates to claim the nomination and halt the race, or all  states have voted, and the candidate with the most delegates has won. Thank you for your commitment to the facts.

Tara O. From everything I’ve heard Reuters is supposed to be a news organization and not a tabloid. Journalists, who work for news organizations are supposed to report on facts. Yet this article seems to be tabloid material or propaganda. R.W.

Several readers wrote to object to the lead of this story: GBU Editor

REUTERS photo by Jason Cohn 

China seeks to contain ongong Tibet unrest

I believe this is meant to be “ongoing”.

Hattie

Yes. Several readers caught this one. We corrected: GBU Editor

REUTERS photo by Rupak De Chowdhuri

Detroit’s Democratic mayor indicted in sex scandal  

The controversy surrounding the black politician once seen as a rising star in his party has deadlocked city government and become a distraction to the Democratic Party as it struggles with the issue of how to handle Michigan delegates still being contested by Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. 

Please help me understand the relevance of stating that he is a “black politician.” Why did the writer feel the mayor’s race needed to be used to describe him and what does his race have to do with the charges that he is facing? I have yet to hear of Eliot Spitzer being described as the white politician when anything is written or said about the sex scandal he was involved in.I count on Reuters for unbiased, factual reporting of the news. Can I no longer expect this without racial undertones such as this being thrown in as well?

Kate

His race has absolutely nothing to do with what is being said about him. If he had been a white politician in the same exact situation would this reporter have said, “the white politician…”? Sometimes race is relevant to a story. It seems discriminatory to note it when there is no relevance. It contributes to the perception that black people are black people while white people are people. It also suggests that his race had something to do with his alleged transgressions. 

Craig

A number of readers raised this point. The story should have made clear from the start why his race was mentioned.  Subsequent updates included this elaboration: “I’m deeply disappointed in the prosecutor’s decision,” said Kilpatrick, who earlier compared his critics to a “lynch mob” and said he had been subjected to racial epithets since the scandal broke. GBU Editor

REUTERS photo by Rebecca Cook

Indonesia left deep imprint on Obama family

“She could enjoy a G&T and a good argument,” said McGlynn.

In this article about Barak Obama and his mother during their time in Indonesia, the writer quotes John McGlynn as saying “She could enjoy a G&T and a good argument.” I think it would have been appropriate to explain what is meant by G&T. Is it “give and take” as in a discussion or,  perhaps, “gin and tonic”?

A good general rule is “Always DYA (define your acronyms)”.

J.F.W.

Yes, we meant gin and tonic, and we should have made that clear: GBU Editor

REUTERS/Obama For America/Handout

New York Governor Eliot Spitzer (R) stands next to his wife Silda Wall Spitzer as he announces his resignation at his office in New York March 12, 2008. Spitzer faced pressure to quit since it was reported earlier in the week that he was caught on a federal wiretap arranging to meet with a prostitute at a Washington hotel last month.

The caption is incorrect and being sent to the world. I think you should issue a correction ASAP. Eliot Spitzer is a DEMOCRAT and NOT a REPUBLICAN; therefore, the (R) should be a (D).

Joseph B.

The (R) in this instance refers to his position in the photo (right) and not his party. This has confused readers in the past, as well. Of course, one might ask whether we really need to distinguish between Spitzer and his wife in a photograph of two people: GBU Editor

REUTERS photo by Brendan McDermid