HUGE Assault round... (Idiot Journalist)

[JohnKSa]

Yesterday the local paper ran a story about a little boy who had recovered from a drive-by shooting.

The author noted that the boy's house was hit several times both by 9mm bullets and " .762 caliber bullets common to assault rifles."

I don't think .762 caliber bullets are all that common PERIOD.

Why can't these people make even a minor effort to insure they're not publishing nonsense?

 

[pdmoderator]

You should talk to the press about the nutjobs who are shooting "22 millimeter semiautomatic handguns"

- pdmoderator

 

[Redlg155]

That's what you get when you have non shooters writing articles concerning something that they have no clue about.

That's like asking a man to write a report on what it feels like to have a menstral cycle. Try as you might, you just ain't gonna understand unless you are a woman.

Good Shooting
RED

 

[Justin]

Why can't these people make even a minor effort to insure they're not publishing nonsense?

Because when it comes to math, or anything technical, journalists fall into the fetal position, and start to quietly sob.

Hmm, can't do math, engineering, computer science, forestry, or anything else that's remotely useful? Why journalism must be your game!

 

[Waitone]

Point #1
To be really into guns this day and time one has to be conversant in the following endeavors:
--mechanics
--materials
--chemistry
--ballistics
--physics
--ergonomics
--law
--politics
--disfunctional politics
--psychology
--constitutional law
--western civilization
--early American history
--European history
--business law
--ad nauseum

It is possible to graduate from "journalism" school without
exposure to any of these subjects.

Point #2
Pro-gun types suck at playing the influence game with media in general and print media specifically. "Journalists" are afraid // ashamed to pick up the phone and call the NRA for clarification or explanation of a particular issue. Alternatives to the NRA do not make themselves available as a source. Until we grow a brain and start playing the influence game we will continue to see profound idiocy in print and on the air.

 

[Jim V]

I've offered to write up a simple firearms fact sheet for some newspaper reporters that I had contacted regarding errors in a newspaper story or two. Two of the reporters got back to me and thanked me for pointing out their errors and the rest never did. The two that got back with me did not make the same errors again. However none of the reporters showed any interest in having a fact/data sheet.

I was not talking about crime stats orCCW facts, just stuff like 12 gauge not .12 gauge, .22" not .22m/m and the like. No interest at all.

 

[itgoesboom]

Okay, i know that bashing journalists is one of our favorite games here, but please try to remember, that there are journalists here that are pro-gun, ME included. (although, i am a photojournalist, so that does show that i am superior to regular journalists ).
I.G.B.

 

[Hkmp5sd]

When the screw up something as simple as getting the correct caliber for the gun they are talking about, makes you wonder how many errors are in the non-firearm related articles they write.

 

[Jim March]

How many of us gunnies, in casual conversation, would verbally refer to a caliber such as "twotwothree" or "sevensixtytwo" without worrying about decimal points?

Seems to me the reporter transcribed such a caliber description he got over the phone or something.

Not that big a deal, compared to other media bloopers on guns.

 

[tbz]

actually not to bad

considering that the usual statement would read
boy's house was hit several times both by 9mm and " .762 caliber guns"

 

[BogBabe]

These types of errors arise from nothing but sheer, unadulterated laziness and an "I don't care if I get it right" attitude.

Reporters don't need your fact sheet, Jim V -- although it was a nice move on your part to offer.

The AP Stylebook, which every reporter in the world has a copy of, contains an entire section on weapons. This section provides the correct designations for .22, 9mm, .223, 12 gauge, etc. etc. There is an explanation of caliber vs gauge. There is an explanation of the difference between semi-auto and full auto, between semi-auto pistol vs revolver. There is an explanation of rifle vs shotgun.

All reporters have all this information at their fingertips.

When we see this kind of sloppy reporting, we should contact the reporter's managing editor and point out that the reporter had this information available to them and chose to report incorrect information instead.

 

[spacemanspiff]

quote-considering that the usual statement would read
boy's house was hit several times both by 9mm and " .762 caliber guns"end quote

do you use an inner waist band to conceal a gun that is only 9mm? or is this one of those new 'pocket rockets' that everyone in the media says is 'so deadly'?

and how many feet per second does the .762 caliber travel at? foot pounds? are double taps easy with a .762?

 

[pdmoderator]

In all fairness, it took a while to explain to my wife (who tests the security of computer systems for a living, and is therefore not stupid) what a "caliber" was. And now she wants 22 of 'em!

The solution is to get the press out to a shoot.

- pdmoderator

 

[DAVID NANCARROW]

whats the recoil on that 30 inch gun (762MM)? Need a muzzle brake?

 

[Brian Gibbons]

I think it's just a typo ...

The writer probably mean't to say 76.2 millimetre. I used to have a semi-automatic revolver that took a 15 round clip in that calibre ...

 

[another okie]

In the documentary series "A soldier's story" (on Vietnam) the reporter, who claims to be a vet, mentions the men carrying 45 millimeter handguns. Wow! Talk about some recoil!