Author Topic: I hate journalistic writing (Read 100339 times)

rivka · « **Reply #550 on:** January 14, 2013, 01:30:45 PM »

Except for those schools on the quarter system, winter is most often a shortened or mini-semester (like summer, only more so).

Jonathon · « **Reply #551 on:** January 14, 2013, 01:32:24 PM »

BYU has a sort of modified trimester system. The year is effectively split into three trimesters, but one of those is split into spring and summer terms.

rivka · « **Reply #552 on:** January 14, 2013, 01:33:54 PM »

How bizarre. How many of those terms are required terms (to maintain full-time student status, for instance)?

Jonathon · « **Reply #553 on:** January 14, 2013, 01:35:41 PM »

Just fall semester (late August or early September to mid-to-late December) and winter semester (early January to mid-to-late April).

rivka · « **Reply #554 on:** January 14, 2013, 01:38:54 PM »

Ah. Then it's not so different from those that have fall, spring, and summer (which often has multiple sub-semesters), except for nomenclature.

Jonathon · « **Reply #555 on:** January 14, 2013, 01:46:37 PM »

That makes sense. I'm not very familiar with other schools' term/semester/whatever systems, but it seemed like our winter semester corresponded to most other people's spring semester, as pooka said.

rivka · « **Reply #556 on:** January 14, 2013, 01:50:15 PM »

Oh, is that what pooka meant?

Jonathon · « **Reply #557 on:** January 14, 2013, 01:53:33 PM »

I think so, though I'm not sure if she's talking about the U of U or some other school.

BlackBlade · « **Reply #558 on:** January 14, 2013, 07:15:00 PM »

From the Washington Post (No edits other than emphasis from me).

Quote

The 21 / 2-hour interview will be edited to 90 minutes and aired on the OWN Network at 9 p.m.

So the 10.5 hour interview? Also, if they were saying 2 1/2 hour interview, is the hyphen necessary?

Jonathon · « **Reply #559 on:** January 14, 2013, 07:39:17 PM »

The hyphen is still necessary; they just messed up the spacing. For this reason I hate numerical fractions in running text, unless they're done as proper case fractions, like ½.

pooka · « **Reply #560 on:** January 23, 2013, 02:44:00 PM »

Yeah, our spring term is January to May, though the May is just exams, maybe, and graduation.

The other day on KSL it said "Parents to be killed loved animals, each other." I forget now if it had hyphens. I was just so puzzled why they were described as "to be killed."

Jonathon · « **Reply #561 on:** January 23, 2013, 02:54:07 PM »

Are you talking about this story? The headline is still terrible, but at least it's easier to parse.

Brinestone · « **Reply #562 on:** January 23, 2013, 06:26:37 PM »

Man! I saw that headline and just could not figure it out. I'm glad they added the hyphens, at least.

Annie Subjunctive · « **Reply #563 on:** February 06, 2013, 06:09:22 PM »

Jonathon · « **Reply #564 on:** February 06, 2013, 06:23:48 PM »

That's some really terrible justification, too.

rivka · « **Reply #565 on:** February 06, 2013, 06:41:09 PM »

I briefly died once.

But I got better.

Tante Shvester · « **Reply #566 on:** February 07, 2013, 12:02:02 PM »

Was there a tunnel and a bright light and a feeling of ineffable love that you somehow managed to eff about?

rivka · « **Reply #567 on:** February 07, 2013, 06:05:05 PM »

Not that I recall.

BlackBlade · « **Reply #568 on:** February 07, 2013, 09:44:26 PM »

Quote

Feb. 15 fly-by will be the nearest recorded brush with a space rock — about the size of an office building — so large, scientists say.

I know it's not grammatically incorrect, but it jars me all the same.

Jonathon · « **Reply #569 on:** February 07, 2013, 09:58:51 PM »

What exactly jars you? The awkwardly placed parenthetical set off in em dashes?

BlackBlade · « **Reply #570 on:** February 08, 2013, 08:08:08 AM »

Quote from: Jonathon on February 07, 2013, 09:58:51 PM

What exactly jars you? The awkwardly placed parenthetical set off in em dashes?

Yes. I just don't see why it's necessary.

Why not "Scientists say Feb. 15's fly-by will be the nearest recorded brush with a space rock, which is about the size of an office building"?

Jonathon · « **Reply #571 on:** February 08, 2013, 08:45:51 AM »

Because that might be good English, but it's bad Journalese.

Jonathon · « **Reply #572 on:** February 08, 2013, 02:45:59 PM »

SFO cancellations cause of East Coast Snowstorm

Apparently the San Francisco airport can control weather on the other side of the country.

BlackBlade · « **Reply #573 on:** February 08, 2013, 03:08:04 PM »

It's those damn unions again!

BlackBlade · « **Reply #574 on:** February 20, 2013, 07:19:38 AM »

From The Associated Press,

Quote

Under cross-examination by the defense, police Detective Warrant Officer Hilton Botha acknowledged that the witness who allegedly overheard the argument was 600 meters (yards) from Pistorius’ house, where the shooting occurred.

I know a yard and a meter are very close units of measurement, but why on earth are they just being used interchangeably in the article? In yards, it's actually 656. So why not say, "600 meters (about 650 yards)" in the article?

Or better yet, teach Americans the metric system (even along side the imperial one) so when they read any of the units, they are familiar with them.