Correction Notes

Checking a Passage Against Its Source

When a Leaf & Footpath article makes a factual claim, it names and links the source used. To check a passage, open the linked source and compare its words with ours. Look for the same subject, the same scope, and the same conclusion. If the source is more limited than our wording, that difference is worth recording.

Keeping a Correction Note

A clear correction note is short and precise. Write down the article title and section, the exact sentence, the cited source and its link, what the source actually says, and what you found different. Keep the note for your own records. Honest noting is part of good field practice, the same habit we describe in Field Notes: record what you saw, not what you expected.

What Counts as an Error

An error is a claim that the cited source does not support, a broken or wrong link, a misread date or place, or a missing label on an illustration. A difference of opinion, a further example, or a request for more detail is not an error, though it may still be useful to note.

Links and Illustrations

If a link no longer reaches the source, note that. If an illustration is not labelled as an AI illustration, note that too. Training the habit of checking links and labels keeps the magazine usable.

Keep Your Check with the Source

This page is a resource for checking and noting. The method above works with your own notes.