Atlas Auto Body Victimized by Census Impropriety

  Occasionally and fortunately not often, newspapers need to clarify a story because of errors that are committed, even if unintentional. Last week’s Revere Advocate front page story most likely left the mistaken impression to the reader that Atlas Auto Body shop in Revere was at the “center of a controversy” involving the census. It may have inadvertently caused harm to a long standing, reputable, family business. It was certainly not our intention, and for that, we apologize.

  Atlas Auto Body was as much, if not more of a victim in this “controversy” than anyone else. We don’t know who’s at fault in this saga, the people employed to collect the data, the individuals who filled out the forms, the folks in charge of compiling the information or anyone else involved in the bureaucratic chain of command. But what the reader can be sure of is that the owners of the property that houses Atlas Auto Body have no culpability in this fiasco. Just as a census taker or an individual could use Fenway Park or Gillette Stadium as their address on a form, without the knowledge of the owners, Atlas is no more responsible for this situation than the Red Sox or the Patriots would be in such a hypothetical.