Business Insider issued a correction on Tuesday after publishing an article with incorrect information about migration patterns in the United States.
The original article claimed that more people had left Florida than New York and California in 2021. However, it was later revealed that the numbers had been mistakenly switched.
The article, titled "More people actually moved out of Florida than New York or California in 2021," stated that 674,740 residents had left Florida, surpassing the numbers for California (433,402) and New York (287,249). This information was widely shared on social media, with many Twitter users, including members of Republican Governor Ron DeSantis' team, pointing out the error.
Christian Pushaw, Rapid Response Director, tweeted, "Business Insider journalist @NeubauerKelsey apparently does not know how to read a spreadsheet. That figure - 674,740 - is people who moved TO Florida, not OUT OF Florida. Retraction needed." Pushaw also highlighted that the journalist in question, Kelsey Neubauer, is a Columbia University journalism graduate and a real estate reporter.
Following the pushback, Business Insider deleted the tweet and revised the article to reflect the correct information. The updated version now reads, "We got it wrong: More people moved out of New York and California than Florida in 2021." An editor's note was added to acknowledge the error and clarify the accurate figures: "In 2021, an estimated 469,577 people moved out of Florida, while 674,740 people relocated to the state. An earlier version of the story switched those numbers."
The original article had also included a comment from Realtor.com chief economist Danielle Hale, who stated that the incorrect numbers undermined the narrative of people leaving liberal states like New York and California for more conservative states like Florida. However, this comment was removed in the revised version.
While some criticized Business Insider for the mistake, DeSantis' press secretary, Jeremy Redfern, commended the publication for publicly correcting the error. Redfern tweeted, "I do want to thank @nichcarlson for taking this error seriously and ensuring that the record was corrected publicly. Very rare these days for me to get a public correction. Most outlets delete the story and pretend it never happened."
In January, Fox Business reported that approximately 343,000 Californians and 300,000 New Yorkers had left their respective states in 2022. In contrast, Florida experienced a population increase of 319,000 residents.
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