Bad geography spoils ‘Bright Idea’

Jace Radke

Tuesday, Jan. 8, 2002 | 10:53 a.m.

Sprint's self-proclaimed "Bright Idea Pages" in its new phonebook turned into little more than the bright red of embarrassment.

The yellow pages being distributed this month include the quick-reference "Bright Idea Pages" that give Las Vegas residents an easy way to get in touch with the local federal government offices, including the FBI's Albuquerque field office, Kirtland Air Force Base or the U.S. Attorney's Office ... all in New Mexico.

Uh, bright idea, poor execution.

Las Vegas federal government pages were switched with New Mexico numbers because, according to Sprint, the government sent the wrong information on a computer file labeled as "Las Vegas."

"We didn't discover it until after the books were printed," said Sprint spokeswoman Detra Page.

She said the company printed 875,000 directories and will not correct or update the books until July, when a new telephone book is scheduled to come out.

"Most of the numbers are repeated in the white pages and are correct," Page said. "We'll be notifying residents in a future billing about the error, and we're suggesting that those who heavily use the 'Bright Ideas Pages' keep the section from the 2001 book."

When told about the mistake, Natalie Collins, spokeswoman for Nevada's U.S. Attorney's Office, said that she didn't think it would cause too much of a problem in Las Vegas.

"It might be torture for that receptionist in New Mexico, but I think most people probably get our number through information or the white pages," she said.

People who have trouble finding the correct numbers, which include congressional offices, the Bureau of Land Management and federal courts, can get them online at www.sprintyp.com/directory]listings.html.

Additionally, there is a toll-free number that people may use to request corrected listings. The number is 1-888-693-7327.

As well, Sprint customers will also find that the street index section, which refers to the area maps that begin on page 35, are also a little off. The maps were supposed to start on page 22, making the index references off by 13 pages, Page said.