PrepTest 146, Section 1, Question 25
Critic: The Gazette-Standard newspaper recently increased its editorial(26 more words not shown)
Which one of the following,(8 more words not shown)
- AThe Gazette-Standard pays(13 more words not shown)
- BThe Gazette-Standard has(10 more words not shown)
- CThe Gazette-Standard more(15 more words not shown)
- DThe Gazette-Standard 's(15 more words not shown)
- EThe increase in(18 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
More corrections might mean the paper is finding and acknowledging more of its mistakes. That isn't the same as making more mistakes in the first place.
Suppose the Gazette-Standard investigates errors carefully while its competitor leaves many errors uncorrected. The Gazette-Standard could publish more corrections even if it makes fewer factual mistakes. So the comparison doesn't automatically show that hiring additional editors failed to improve accuracy.
What we’re looking for
For the weaken question, I'd look for that difference in follow-up. Why might the paper print more corrections for a reason other than having an ineffective editorial staff? We don't have to prove the new staff prevented errors; we need to undermine the critic's use of the correction count as evidence that the change isn't working.
Working the answers
- A
Lower pay doesn't establish how well the editors work or how the papers decide which errors to correct. A would need further information connecting salaries to performance before it could tell us anything useful about this comparison.
- B
Being in business longer doesn't explain the current number of corrections or show whether the recent staff increase improved accuracy. An older paper could be more or less careful than a newer one. B gives us no connection between its age and the critic's evidence.
- CCorrect
The Gazette-Standard investigates reader complaints more actively. That gives it more opportunities to discover and acknowledge errors that a less responsive competitor might leave uncorrected. More printed corrections could therefore reflect stronger follow-up rather than worse underlying accuracy.
This doesn't prove the staff increase successfully prevents errors before publication. It weakens the comparison used to claim the increase isn't working: the papers differ in how actively they pursue possible mistakes, so their correction counts aren't a straightforward measure of which makes more mistakes.
- D
More editors checking an article sounds encouraging, but a larger number of checks doesn't establish better checking. The critic already knows the paper added editorial staff and doubts whether that helped. D doesn't explain why the paper could run more corrections despite improved accuracy, or identify a difference in how the papers discover and acknowledge errors after publication. C directly challenges the meaning of the evidence the critic uses.
- E
This describes changes in two kinds of staffing. It doesn't tell us what effect the smaller reporting staff has on factual accuracy or correction practices. The overall head count isn't the issue; the critic's claim concerns whether the editorial change is preventing factual errors.
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