Author Topic: I hate journalistic writing (Read 100216 times)

Jonathon · « **on:** June 19, 2006, 01:10:29 PM »

There are a lot of things I dislike about journalistic writing, but one of my biggest pet peeves is misleading headlines. Here's a prime example from CNET News: University opens school for hackers. A whole new school dedicated to training computer criminals? How shocking and controversial!

Oh, wait. That's not at all what's happening. An existing program is offering a new course, not creating a new school, and the goal is to teach IT professionals how to thwart hacking. The description in the course catalog reads: "In the same way that police detectives need to know how thieves can steal, computer systems administrators need to know what hackers can do."

Ugh. This is why I could never work for a newspaper, I think.

Mr. Anderson · « **Reply #1 on:** June 19, 2006, 02:02:25 PM »

Yeah. I always hate those news previews that sound really interesting. Then you sit and watch the news, they end up showing that story last, and it's a stupid 30 second bit.

Jonathon · « **Reply #2 on:** July 16, 2006, 02:04:30 PM »

Apparently I'm not the only one who hates confusing headlines. I've never taken the time to draw sentence trees of ambiguous headline syntax, though.

pooka · « **Reply #3 on:** July 16, 2006, 05:15:52 PM »

Oh yeah, that's my kind of diagramming. The favorite illustration was "I saw Richard Nixon flying over the Grand Canyon."

Porter · « **Reply #4 on:** July 16, 2006, 08:24:34 PM »

I can't let this thread pass without mention the oft-quoted (out here) but so far unconfirmed headline that was once in the Daily Universe (BYU's newspaper):

Quote

Students Help Rape Victims

Jonathon · « **Reply #5 on:** July 16, 2006, 08:50:14 PM »

We talked about that one in my introductory editing class. Now I'm wondering if there's a way to track down the original.

pooka · « **Reply #6 on:** July 17, 2006, 07:36:03 AM »

I laughed, but I felt guilty about it.

Jonathon · « **Reply #7 on:** July 18, 2006, 11:37:34 AM »

I was browsing KSL.com to try to find out where all the smoke is coming from (answer: a wildfire a couple counties south of here) and came across this appalling article. It's chock full of stylistic errors and generally inept writing. It wanders, throws in some random quotes, wanders some more, and then ends abruptly. Has this reporter ever heard of the AP Style Guide?

rivka · « **Reply #8 on:** July 18, 2006, 12:05:44 PM »

And why oh WHY does it insist on capitalizing Ozone?

Jonathon · « **Reply #9 on:** July 18, 2006, 12:46:28 PM »

That would be one of the horrible stylistic errors—along with "Oxides of Nitrogen," "Volatile Organic Compounds," and "Sunlight." Sunlight!

Mr. Anderson · « **Reply #10 on:** July 18, 2006, 02:49:18 PM »

I wrote that report in 4th grade. How'd KSL get ahold of it? Dina Freedman stole my work!

Quote

And of course, when you're filling up that tank tonight, you'll have your car full of people because we should be car pooling right now to cut down on vehicle emissions.

Are they suggesting car pooling to the gas station?

Jonathon · « **Reply #11 on:** July 18, 2006, 03:01:43 PM »

Nope—they're demanding it. Note the use of an imperative: you will . . . or else!

Mr. Anderson · « **Reply #12 on:** July 18, 2006, 03:06:16 PM »

Can I come pick you up this evening to go fill my tank?

Jonathon · « **Reply #13 on:** July 18, 2006, 03:27:17 PM »

Absolutely.

Teshi · « **Reply #14 on:** July 18, 2006, 04:36:21 PM »

Quote

Apparently I'm not the only one who hates confusing headlines. I've never taken the time to draw sentence trees of ambiguous headline syntax, though.

I had no problem reading that headline.

Although I too dislike misleading headlines. I want to know what the story is about not what you wish it was about!

rivka · « **Reply #15 on:** July 18, 2006, 06:10:00 PM »

Quote

That would be one of the horrible stylistic errors—along with "Oxides of Nitrogen," "Volatile Organic Compounds," and "Sunlight." Sunlight!

I wasn't able to force myself to read that far.

Although the VOC thing could, I suppose, come from the fact that it is very often referred to by the TLA.

pooka · « **Reply #16 on:** July 19, 2006, 07:33:06 AM »

VOCs are EPA jargon.

rivka · « **Reply #17 on:** July 19, 2006, 07:34:36 AM »

Also true. But any organic chemist (and a large number of chemists who don't specialize in organics) would also refer to them that way.

Jonathon · « **Reply #18 on:** August 14, 2006, 03:04:59 PM »

When will be good editing?

Edit: Or, better yet, "When will be edited well newspapers?"

Porter · « **Reply #19 on:** August 14, 2006, 03:09:02 PM »

While there's wrong with the grammar, there is something very wrong with this:

Seven die in toilet accident

Jonathon · « **Reply #20 on:** August 14, 2006, 03:10:53 PM »

What a way to go, huh?

Nighthawk · « **Reply #21 on:** August 14, 2006, 03:41:57 PM »

pooka · « **Reply #22 on:** September 18, 2006, 07:49:32 AM »

A pair of adjacent headlines on MSN today reported:

"Mexican Meth floods U.S. markets
Space station crew reports foul odor."

Jonathon · « **Reply #23 on:** September 18, 2006, 08:35:14 AM »

>.<

Farmgirl · « **Reply #24 on:** September 18, 2006, 08:41:05 AM »

As a former journalist (and former journalism major) I must at least partially defend: At most newspapers, the headlines are NOT written by the journalist. They get no say whatsoever on the head used. At least in large daily papers, they write the article, it goes through about two or three copy editors, and one of those copy editors jobs is to find a head that "fits" within the column/space it has been decided to place the article.

Often reporters go "ugh" at their own stories after seeing what headline was added.

FG