David Carr Wanted to Get Stuff Right, Large or Small

Like many NYT readers, I admired David Carr’s media column. It always made the paper worth reading on Monday mornings. Today his final column ran posthumously under the headline “David Carr’s Last Word on Journalism, Aimed at Students.” Cobbled together by his editors from his course curriculum at Boston University, where he’d recently begun teaching, and from remarks he made to his students, the column reflected Carr’s belief in the future of journalism as a big enterprise for important stories. But I always got the sense from his column that he also cared about the little stuff.

Which is why I once sent him the following email message, although I knew he must have received a ton of emails:

Mon, Mar 26, 2007 at 1:34 PM
Dear David Carr,

It’s a small thing and a common error, but you may want to take note of it for the next time you write about the Los Angeles Times. It’s a small “t” the Los Angeles Times. Unlike The (cap “t”) New York Times (or, for that matter, The (cap “t”) Washington Post. You can see that from the front page of the print editions (or online: the Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, The Washington Post).

You might want to let the copy desk know, too.

Sincerely,
Jan Herman, former LAT staff writer

Had I not sensed his wish to get things right, large or small, I wouldn’t have messaged him. And it didn’t surprise me to receive a reply a couple of hours later:

Mon, Mar 26, 2007 at 3:28 PM
hey jan,

thanks for the pull up. will cc.

david
David Carr
New York Times
212 556 3629

Call on God, but row away from the rocks.
— Hunter S. Thompson

I’m sure he copied the copy desk. The New York Times still continues to make the error, not that it matters much. But here’s an oversight, this time a beautiful one, which I hope they never correct: Carr’s phone number is still working. If you dial the number, you’ll have the pleasure of hearing his friendly voice telling you, among other things, “I hope you’re having a lovely day.”