Sometimes a subject is so complex even the most astute reporters are not sure they have it all down correctly. Tom French of the St. Petersburg Times , whose reporting takes him into complex subjects, says he sometimes reads sections of his stories to his sources. Occasionally he hands his copy to a source.

At the Mercury News in San Jose, Pete Carey says he has been checking his work with sources for years. "If I'm quoting someone, I want them to pick up the paper in the morning and say, 'Yeah, that is exactly how I feel about it.'" The newspaper has a policy of leaving it up to the reporter whether to read material to a source before publication. In stories about technology and science, the policy continues, "it is almost always a good idea to read at least the technical parts to an expert." However, "statements made in public forums, speeches or public utterances by politicians or business leaders, etc., should not be read back or revised."

Some reporters believe that the practice of reading back material only invites trouble and that careful reporters do not need this check on their work.

Robert J. Haiman, former executive editor of the St. Petersburg Times, says in his booklet, "Best Practices for Newspaper Journalists," newspapers will be seen as fair "through the practice of reading back to sources copy on highly technical subjects or even showing stories or parts of stories to sources to be sure the reporter has it exactly right."