Holy Frickin Freudian Slip!: The BYU DAILY UNIVERSE AND THE 12 APOSTATES

As Robin might say to Batman, “Holy Frikin Freudian Slip!"

I have just viewed a scan of the 6 April 2009 front page of Brigham Young University's Daily Universe. It captioned a photograph of some of the members of LDS Church Quorum of the Twelve Apostles "The 12 Apostates."

!!

{ Stage direction: Blink twice -- followed by a deep breath of utter disbelief. }

When the Universe editors learned of this error, they pulled as many printed copies they could and fixed the web edition, but not before industrious students, teachers, and staff at The Lord’s University scanned / preserved this soon to be legendary front page.

{ It rates right up there with such legendary newspaper boo-boos as “Dewey defeats Truman” and “Governor Thompson’s pen is a sword.” }

I have also read the official apology the Universe posted calling “The Twelve Apostates” a "typographical error."

I also read Carri Jenkin's damage control statement to the effect that "the typo, which replaced the intended word with a virtual antonym, was an honest mistake and that no university or church administrator has sought to punish those responsible for the blunder. She said the problem is being handled internally by newspaper and Department of Communications staff."

Typographical error my foot.

The Universe cannot get away with this outrage by trying to define it a "typographical error."

The Universe has editors. Where were they? A personal insult / Freudian slip of this magnitude takes planning, especially when a paper should have multiple errors . .. . uh, editors to catch such Freudian slip / "Typographical errors."


RIGHT ASCENSION EXTENDS THE HAND OF ENCOURAGEMENT

As a journalist, I have my own horror stories to tell about personal embarrassing typographical errors / Freudian slips. So I can speak from painful experience.

Thank heaven for the atonement. The Universe editors will need it.