“Ignorant people think it’s the noise which fighting cats make that is so aggravating, but it ain’t so; it’s the sickening grammar they use.” – Mark Twain in “A Tramp Abroad”
Some Times-Union readers would as soon hear cats fighting as to endure some of the newspaper’s grammatical transgressions, not to mention its spelling, punctuation and other errors.
“I just can’t take it anymore,” Dee Reiter wrote recently after seeing a mangled headline. “The grammar in the paper, not just from quoted material, but from the writers/editors themselves is terrible.”
Bob Awtrey of Fernandina Beach occasionally sends marked clippings in which the word “only” seems to wander aimlessly through the news columns.
“Sterling’s (the restaurant) only seats 40 and is often filled,” was one example cited by Awtrey. “The Seminoles have only won at Miami twice since 1985,” was another.
Sometimes writers are sloppy with math, as in this recent observation: “In 1934 … the gasoline tax went from 1.5 cents to 1 cent … a 50 percent decrease.” Several readers suggested doing the math would show a 33 percent decrease.
Anna Large, a reference librarian at Jacksonville University, sends amusing missives occasionally.
“The gentleman recommended that one should eat ‘collared’ greens,” Large wrote, referring to a story about a retired firefighter. “I’m sure (the writer) knows about ‘collard’ greens; I suspect spell check may not be the Southern version!”
There are noun-pronoun agreement problems, as in this sentence by a columnist: “That’s why, as Pioneers-4-Jax pushes for more safety and amenities, they also should continue to push officials to make downtown a 24-hour community.” Spell check does not always catch such errors; copy editors should.
In earlier times, such sentences would get the writer into trouble. Not anymore. Too many newspapers are not the standard-bearers they once were when it comes to handling the language.
“Who does the editing over there, anyway?” asked Ann Barrett, who frequently alerts us to mistakes. We heard from Barrett when a writer used “quaffed” when she meant “coiffed,” when referring to hair, as opposed to drinking heartily.
A reference to “bolonga sandwiches” appeared on the front page on two successive days in teasers to a story about school lunches. Anne B. Yessin reminded that youngsters read the newspaper. Many read it at school as part of a program supported by readers that provides free copies to classrooms.
“What sort of learning experience is provided when the newspaper personnel cannot spell ‘BOLOGNA’ and does not observe the necessary corrections needed on the front page?” Yessin wrote.
A recent story used the term “hurricane near-misses” to describe storms that came close but did not strike this area. Reader Mike Duncan informed editors that “a ‘near miss’ is a hit,” while what the writer apparently meant to describe were “near hits” in that they missed.
Our July headline “GM: DaimlerChrysler says it’s not phased” was grating for Mimi Grenville, who wondered whether editors knew the difference between phased and fazed. “Somehow there needs to be some proofreading,” she said.
Back in the day, newspapers had proofreaders who reviewed stories, headlines and entire pages, and corrected mistakes. No more. Proofreaders were ushered out of most newsrooms when computers appeared.
Now most pages are “proofed” by an editor, usually after one or more other editors have edited stories, written headlines and placed them on a page. The second or third set of eyes is supposed to see every page, but when deadlines loom or editors are in a hurry, pages don’t get a careful review. At other times, bleary-eyed copy editors miss stuff – or fail to use spell check.
The main culprit is carelessness, though. That coupled with a failure to make near-flawless copy and headlines a top priority.
Maybe our readers can help.
Please send me the mistakes you see in today’s paper – grammar, punctuation, spelling, redundancies and awkward construction. Take a few extra minutes with one or more sections and let me know what you find.
Mail your marked up pages, or call and leave a message, or send an e-mail with your findings. I will send a Times-Union umbrella to the person who sends the most miscues or the most interesting.
More importantly, I will share your findings with appropriate editors. Perhaps this will help rivet attention on what many see as a serious problem, a decline in standards.
