I interned at a magazine in college, and the vast majority of my job description was calling up ritzy home stores and asking if said lamp was in stock, if it was, in fact, made of pure gold and if it did, indeed, cost 20 grand. Although it seemed like the most monotonous task at the time, it gave me an appreciation for how important it is to get your facts straight and then check them...and then check them again. If you get a fact wrong -- especially a major fact like a name, address, or price -- and it slips through the cracks and gets published, it makes you look bad. To add insult to injury, it makes your editor look bad, the publication look bad and the people you wrote about look bad. It might seem redundant, but checking your story over and over will keep you credible.
