The Times makes an error in a story involving...well...The Times:

An article in Business Day on Jan. 4 about The New York Times Company's plan to acquire 49 percent of Metro Boston, a free daily newspaper, misstated its circulation. (The error occurred again yesterday in an article about federal scrutiny of newspaper acquisitions.) The average daily circulation is 170,704. The 300,000 figure is the free paper's estimated total readership.

It's an easy mistake to make in a hurry, but someone from the front office - who might read the flagship product - might have called after the Jan. 4 error to correct it then.