Comments on: Great Headlines (Another in a Series)

By: jrp

jrp — Fri, 30 May 2008 16:06:10 +0000

no, you’re right, sophie, and i had my panties all up in a knot yesterday for some reason. i’m also now not sure if tim misspelled cemetery for effect or just as a typo…

By: Sophie

Sophie — Fri, 30 May 2008 14:26:56 +0000

Thanks Tim. Er…it’s cemetEry, not cemetAry. I thought you were pointing out a spelling mistake in the DMN headline.

And jrp: Yeah, I’m big on words. Grammar. Punctuation. I’m old school that way. So sue me.

By: Neal

Neal — Thu, 29 May 2008 23:35:17 +0000

Tim, I’m glad to hear you think spelling counts. Just FYI, it’s “cemetery” not “cemetary” (see the link in your post).

By: DM

DM — Thu, 29 May 2008 21:56:58 +0000

WFAA took the story a bit different with the headline… “Unburied body found in Dallas cemetery”

http://www.wfaa.com/

By: jrp

jrp — Thu, 29 May 2008 20:50:13 +0000

how’s about this for a hede with a deck even

Luddites Seek To Save Language By Banging Head Against Wall

Gen Y’s All Like WTF, Yo?

By: Tom

Tom — Thu, 29 May 2008 20:40:17 +0000

Spelling, punctuation and grammar are nearly extinct on the Interwebs, so why not try to save them? Gen Y is, like, OMG, actually killing it off. Not awesome. This quote from the latest edition of Newsweek says it all:
“Please, please do what you can to cure the verbal virus that seems increasingly rampant among your generation.”
– Pulitzer Prize-winning historian David McCullough, in a commencement address at Boston College, imploring the students to cut back on the use of words such as “like,” “awesome” and “actually”
http://www.newsweek.com/id/138574

By: jrp

jrp — Thu, 29 May 2008 20:36:47 +0000

OK, fair enough, tim and bethany. although it’s the insinuation that typing comments on message boards sans punctuation is immature that irks me most, i guess.

many have no qualms about using “dunno” or things such as “Awe.Some.” etc. and then lead the charge to castigate someone for confusing they’re/there/their etc.

i don’t get it

believe me, man, i know the AP Style book inside and out, i enjoyed Eats, Shoots & Leaves, and often read some pages of the dictionary before falling asleep. and i’ve been a working journalist for a decade. i appreciate editing for editing sake, but here and on other blogs i feel the oft constant correcting is just antagonizing for the sake of antagonizing, which may not be a bad thing, i guess

and truth be told, i do use plenty of commas, question marks, periods, parentheses, etc. and it’s all for effect. although it’s becoming clear to me that my yankee accent while talking and abundant lowercase usage while commenting ain’ts be going’s over’s so well’s down here in Texas

By: Brett

Brett — Thu, 29 May 2008 20:32:07 +0000

Oh, Tim. How could you miss the opportunity for the “The fart joke falls flat(ulent) joke?

Well, that’s it for me. I’m pooped.

By: lisa

lisa — Thu, 29 May 2008 20:31:58 +0000

jrp, in addition to punctuation, you could use some capitals.
http://www.keepandshare.com/doc/view.php?u=11789&p=y

By: Tim Rogers

Tim Rogers — Thu, 29 May 2008 20:16:18 +0000

JRP, I think I speak for the group when I say that big ideas and fart jokes alike are most forcefully communicated with good grammar, proper spelling, etc. Anything less and the effort misses its mark. The idea doesn’t impress; the fart joke falls flat.

As employees of a magazine, we strive to publish smartly written, compelling prose (here and in the “print product”). We don’t always succeed as well as we’d like (especially here, given how quickly the writing is done). So help is always appreciated, as long as it’s offered lovingly.

Sophie’s was.

Spelling does count. Clear communication isn’t the sole province of academia. And pointing out mistakes isn’t pointless.

In conclusion: go, words!