Readership pole: Speling counts
Editors -- well, all newspaper folk, journalists and readers alike -- hate careless errors. Really, we hate all errors, but those avoidable ones are maddening. I occasionally get letters from pushed-to-the-brink readers who offer their services as proofreaders. I occasionally hear the complaint that we rely too much on spell-check, which is a fallible service. So, it's good to know that newspapers with twice the number of staffers have the same issues.
A recent goof in which we referred twice in the same paragraph to utility "polls" brought some barbs from readers, including my home copy editor (husband), who thinks we rely too much on spell check programs.
That's from Melanie Sill, editor at the N&O.
Been there. 'Course I smile inwardly when it occurs to the N&O, a paper that some readers -- the more liberal ones, I presume :) -- point to as far superior to the N&R. (Full disclosure for this tease: I used to work there and count many people there as friends.)
Comments (5)
To report abuse of the comment feature on this site, please use the feedback form at the bottom of any page.
I see the words than and then misused regularly on several blogs. Have you noticed that?
A week or so ago, I saw a four-color flyer for a car dealership fall out of my N&R. The headline read your, when it should have read you're. I wonder who proofed that goof.
Posted on May 11, 2006 4:09 PM
On the subject. . . This has been up on your front web page for about a month:
"Mamie Harmon, a student of renown art teacher Kimon Nicolaides. . ."
It's like my 5-year old daughter, who captioned a drawing of her renown granny eating "fistows." (That's "French toast.")
Posted on May 12, 2006 1:37 AM
I believe you're right. We'll get that fixed. Thanks.
Posted on May 12, 2006 5:11 AM
Scott:
As the writer of the Mamie Harmon story, you are right, sir.
It should be "renowned,'' the adjective; not "renown,'' the noun. Those sort of things keep me up at night.
As one word nerd to another, thanks for the catch. Spelling "Nicolaides'' was hard enough. I'll just blame it on my Carolina education (that's University of South Carolina to you Tar Heels).
By the way, Scott, as I slipped picking up my dictionary on that, you might want to check our calendar. You write:
"On the subject. . . This has been up on your front web page for about a month."
Not really. It went up a week ago today. Now, I know you don't want your 5-year-old daughter to grow up too quick. As a father of two, I feel like the years are already speeding by. I mean, you want to enjoy those "fistows.''You know, from your renown granny.
Again, thanks for the catch.
Hey, JR, is this a short enough post?
Posted on May 13, 2006 12:01 PM
I don't know how copy editors do as good a job as they do. I edited a special issue of a journal once and went over it (I thought) pretty carefully at least 2-3 times. Then I sent it to a grad student with copy editing experience and she found probably 60 errors. The other problem I have--and I bet other writing teachers will know the problem--is that I'll get so used to correcting "effect/affect" or "it's/its" that after a while I correct it when it's done right.
Posted on May 13, 2006 3:13 PM