The Fourth Estate's problem in reporting railroad-related stories is threefold, in my estimation.
First, journalism schools teach reporters to avoid jargon, as it may be confusing or completely unknown to their readers. And we all know that the railroad industry is loaded with jargon and vernacular. Indeed, it is practically a foreign language to the uninitiated. In the process of terminology simplification, it is unfortunate - but not unusual - for errors to occur. Common examples: Engineer becomes train driver, grade crossing apparatus becomes railroad signals. Some errors are forgivable; some are egregious. Even the major niche railfan publications make a boo-boo periodically.
Another major problem in the field is so-called parachute journalism. This is the act of literally dropping a reporter into a scene to collect the information, interviews, and photographs for a breaking news story on a very tight deadline. To compound matters, few journalists possess even a basic understanding of the railroad industry, so some mistakes are inevitable.
Third, all mainstream media outlets are working with less staff these days and many reporters have more than one assigned beat. Most newspapers have reporters who specialize in major topics like art, business, lifestyles, sports, politics, religion, and entertainment. Few - if any - publications have a transportation expert, let alone someone with a fundamental understanding of the railroad industry. Let's face it: Railroads are essentially an unknown entity to the general population in the United States today.

My $0.02 ... Chris Goepel