Thursday, September 27, 2012

Fact Checking

So this is a post where I talk about something that seems small, but drives me absolutely crazy.

In case you hadn't heard, IKEA is planning to open a store in Merriam. This is exciting news for KC, but this post isn't about that. It is about Channel 41 and basic fact checking. Here is the video in question:



The part that is making me crazy is where the reporter mentions that the two closest stores to Kansas City currently are in Texas and Colorado. This is just about the easiest fact to check ever. All you have to do is go to the Ikea "Find a Store" page and type in Kansas City. Here are the results:

Bolingbrook, ILView Store Page 427 mi Get Directions Get Directions
Schaumburg, ILView Store Page 439 mi Get Directions Get Directions
Twin Cities, MNView Store Page 444 mi Get Directions Get Directions
Dallas, TXView Store Page 476 mi Get Directions Get Directions
West Chester, OHView Store Page 597 mi Get Directions Get Directions

Texas is actually 4th and Colorado doesn't even make the list. For the record, using the totally deep and sophisticated research method of Mapquesting, it turns out the Colorado store is 609 miles away.

Look, I am all for cutting news organizations under deadlines some slack when they screw up. But this was just so easy to get right...

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