What is it about me and journalists? It seems like every time I am involved in a newspaper article — whether it is a review, a feature article, or if I am just being interviewed for a related story — they get it wrong.

I just read an article, which I had been interviewed for, that is published in the Sacramento Bee about Matt Muckey (Associate Principal Trumpet in the New York Philharmonic). You can see the article here. Overall, the piece is well done, yet, once again, when my name is mentioned, something gets screwed up:

“Some trumpet players spend 15 to 20 years of their adult life trying to land such a position,” said Craig Morris, who played trumpet alongside Muckey in the highly regarded San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra.”

Well… almost. I did coach his trumpet section in the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra during my time as a member of the San Francisco Symphony! What’s even worse is that I distinctly remember talking to the writer about my background. I think his quotes from me would have had a lot more meaning and power if he had mentioned that I was a professional trumpet player on some level! To me it reads like, “Oh, and here is what this other guy who used to play in youth orchestra has to say about Matt Muckey.”

Fortunately, I think the story is good, and it will give a non-musician reader some idea of the incredible accomplishment it is for Matt to have won this job at such a young age. But I still have to wonder… why does my name always appear in the newspaper right next to a mistake?

If my experience is any indication, we should all be very wary about what we read in the newspaper.

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