Alt Ledes: Spell Check Is Not Perfickt

Spell check is a useful tool to use to quickly identify some spelling errors, but not all. For example, it will not alert you to when you incorrectly spell a word that creates an incorrect word that is correctly spelled. Like here:


Sara Howard will no longer be walking down the isle this morning after hearing of her fiance's fatal car accident, 15 minutes before their ceremony was to begin.

The problem here? You meant to say aisle, but you misspelled it as isle.

And that's a bigger problem than just a simple misspelling.

That's because the misspelling creates a different word. Aisle means a passageway between two seating sections. An isle is a small an island.

So, what you are saying is that Sara was no longer going to walk down a small island.

And that, unfortunately, is a fatal fact error. And a fact error is a fatal.

So let me be clear: SPELL CHECK IS A COMPLEMENT TO -- BUT NOT A SUBSTITUTE FOR -- CHECKING YOUR STORY LINE-BY-LINE AND WORD-BY-WORD YOURSELF.

Please be sure to BOTH spell check AND eyeball your story before you turn it in. Each and every time.