Watermark Media is a local, independent company dedicated to reporting LGBT news, and we pride ourselves on our trustworthiness and integrity. There are a number of systems in place to ensure we consistently meet our high standards of credibility. We are staffed by humans, however, and humans make errors. We regret to report that we’ve made an error when it comes to the results of the Tampa Bay 2015 WAVE Awards.
On Feb. 27, we posted to our Facebook page an image from a photoshoot for the cover of the Tampa Bay WAVEs issue. Shortly after this photo was posted, we uncovered a mistake – we used an inaccurate list to identify the Tampa Bay winners, and as a result, contacted a number of individuals for photos and profiles who did not legitimately come out on top in this year’s reader poll. The subjects depicted in the Feb. 27 photos are all finalists but were not necessarily first place winners.
We’ve moved to correct the error quickly and cleanly. Watermark takes full responsibility for the mistake and deeply regrets any ill effect on anyone pictured, interviewed or erroneously contacted by our team. This situation is isolated to the Tampa Bay area and we have apologized to all who were given incorrect information. Additionally, we have taken steps to ensure that an error of this type does not happen again.
Regardless of our mistake, it’s important to note that the results are accurate, all of the finalists deserve recognition, and each should be proud of that achievement. Please join us March 12 at Georgie’s Alibi to celebrate all of the remarkable, commendable finalists and winners of the 2015 Tampa Bay WAVE Awards.
