Another great Testy Copy Editors’ thread, this one about whether it’s rational to expect to have a social life when you work nights covering the news. Here’s a nod to Wayne Countryman of the Baltimore Sun, who always seems to…
Category: Editing commentary
No, no, no, no, no
Steve Earle used to shoot drugs. Now he mainlines the latest news. There’s gonna be times when a writer has to be talked out of being clever, like when likening news addiction to heroin addiction. The former is an affectation,…
Give your copy editor a hug
I’ve become so accustomed to the “tips for newsies” links on the Poynter site linking to absurd advice that I completely missed “10 things to know and love about copy editors,” which has been up since late last week. See,…
‘Q&As are more stenography than journalism’
Blanp and company muse on the question-and-answer format, which seems to be infecting a lot more of our pages these days.
How many times…
… should we read a piece of copy? Clay says, as many as time allows, but at least twice.
Clumsy writing …
… makes us look like we’ve got an agenda. To wit: The bombings occurred just hours after three other American soldiers were killed in overnight attacks in and around the capital, bringing to 112 the total number of U.S. military…
On the langauge getting away from us
Another Testy Copy Editors thread becomes a debate over putting profanity in the paper. The fact that it’s happening so often these days suggests we’re nearing a critical mass on the issue of printing “family” newspapers. When the family’s everyday…
On making an Ass of U and Me
Clay on always testing your assumptions. He points up the obvious — never assume “they’d never be that stupid” — and adds a subtle hint. A couple of bonus points here: Study the results of your spell check. It contains…
ABC News issues instructions …
… on fairness in news coverage. Though it’s heresy to admit that TV newsies have anything to offer us, the tips (from the STUMP blog) are useful. A couple zingers: 2. Note when there is good economic news (since we…
On posting unedited copy on the Web
The Testy Copy Editors had a lively debate over it.