“The Mississippi River drains about forty percent of the contiguous United States.”
Our read
This one matches the record. The U.S. Geological Survey describes the Mississippi River watershed as about 1.2 million square miles, roughly forty percent of the contiguous United States. A broadcast can round a figure and still be faithful when the primary source rounds it the same way. Nothing left out of the sentence changes what it means.
Midday Check
Picture to come
Oct 7, 2026, 12:05 PM CDT
Sources
Script
Narration script. If a face or a voice delivers this, the anchor is synthetic.
Midday Check. Not every line on the air is a trap.
Bayline Desk said the Mississippi River drains about forty percent of the contiguous United States. The Geological Survey puts that watershed at roughly 1.2 million square miles, which is the same forty percent, said with a round number the source itself uses.
Verdict: matches record. Round is allowed when the record is round. We will say so when it holds.
Corrections
None on file.