This sentence from a piece by Frank Bruni in the New York Times illustrates the standard use of “home” in… Read more »
Posts Categorized: Journalism
Editing in practice: Jim Fingal, fact-checking hero
A book review from the New York Times gives me a new role model. The book is “The Lifespan of… Read more »
“Lowly” copy editor? Surely you jest
A post by Yoni Goldstein at the National Post of Canada asserts, I hope with irony, that the copy editor… Read more »
We beg you to stop “begging the question”
I read this sentence in a story recently: The churches say they have no money for upkeep, and the world-renowned… Read more »
What will the Word of the Year be?
The American Dialect Society will choose its Word of the Year today. Here is the list of nominees. I like… Read more »
Check the facts: 10 tips for copy editors
Checking facts is part of some copy editors’ jobs. When I have trained copy editors on newspaper desks, I tell… Read more »
Writers care about grammar, too
A reporter recently sent me this question: Which of the following is correct: “Ten percent of Americans plan to give….”… Read more »
Working outside newspapers
I hope it’s clear that even though I am clinging to my job as a daily newspaper copy editor, this… Read more »
Misplaced modifiers amuse and confuse us
If you are a copy editor, you probably recognize the problem in the following sentences, and they probably give you… Read more »
Why I am still a copy editor
Perhaps the title of this post should be “Why am I still a copy editor?” Certainly, the occupation I chose… Read more »
How to make a word geek happy
I have now in my possession the Oxford English Dictionary, Second Edition, on CD-ROM, Version 3.1. When it landed in… Read more »
Words we love
Shall we start a list, word lovers? Here are two entries to start. agnorant: Slang, adjective. Describes someone who is… Read more »
A Triangle Grammar Guide quiz
Today’s quiz has five sentences involving either verb agreement or pronoun choice. Choose the answer from the two choices given… Read more »
It’s a nerve-racking question
Some readers thought this headline from last week contained a misspelled word: Guilt racks accused mother. They thought the verb… Read more »
They who?
This sentence from an Associated Press story on Page 1A Wednesday illustrates a pronoun antecedent problem. The government still could… Read more »
When a sea change happens
Today’s story Conflict hits home in N.C. politics contains a quote with an interesting idiom: sea change. Here is the… Read more »
Disinterested parties
Many writers and editors distinguish between disinterested and uninterested. To be disinterested means to be impartial, the Associated Press Stylebook… Read more »
Kudos is all Greek to me
I noticed “kudos” in The News & Observer today, so I can write about the plural/singular dispute. You might not… Read more »
Being couth
The word choice in this lead from Sunday’s paper drew a call from one reader to our public editor: The… Read more »
Are you a native?
In a graphic today comparing Buffalo/Niagara Falls and the Triangle (something about a hockey match, I think), The N&O called… Read more »