Word Wise: The Wednesday Word Wise Roundup

May 14, 2008

The Wednesday Word Wise Roundup

A lot of people whine about other people who treat e-mail so casually they stop using uppercase letters altogether. It says something about that person, these latte-sipping uppercase-using people think. In the case of Jerry Yang, chief executive at Yahoo!, it definitely does. He wrote an all-staff e-mail the other day using no uppercase letters whatsoever to make a point after recent talks with Microsoft fell through. The grand panjandrums of grammar political correctness took notice, and then the Chicago Tribune took notice of them.

Maybe it’s because of Hillary Clinton's shameless comment to USA Today about “hard working Americans, white Americans” or the now-infamous, spot-on “Saturday Night Live” sketch depicting her as morally degenerate, but yesterday several people sent me a link to a blog called “Stuff White People Like,” which, while funny, also made me a bit uncomfortable (they sent it because one of the things white people apparently like is grammar). Then I saw that yesterday John McIntyre, assistant managing editor for the copy desk at The Baltimore Sun and writer of the excellent “You Don’t Say” column, also took note of the site. “In fact, one of the greatest joys a white person can experience is to catch a grammar mistake in a major publication,” the SWPL blogger wrote. “Finding one allows a white person to believe that they are better than the writer and the publication since they would have caught the mistake.” McIntyre’s response? “The greatest carriers-on often seem to be older white guys, their vermilion wattles trembling with rage as they inveigh against the shoddy education of the younger generation(s), the abysmal decline in literacy and the criminal disregard of English grammar as God intended it to be used.” Read more here, it’s worth it.

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Comments

I have to admit, "Stuff White People Like" has been a guilty pleasure for a while now. :) I feel like I'm technically not supposed to find it funny, but I really, really, do. My favorite: "80s Nights"

Posted by:Sarah Wurrey | May 15, 2008 at 04:24 PM

Why "Word Wise"?

When I started to send out a weekly writing tip to my Chicago colleagues at Edelman (the world's largest privately owned PR firm), little did I know how quickly the list of those receiving it would grow. But word spread, as word is wont to do, and for the past three years about 1,500 of my 2,400 colleagues worldwide have been receiving it. The tips, which are about grammar, usage and style, have a dual purpose – to remind my colleagues in public relations of the power of the written word (I’m lucky to work for a company that not only prizes, but expects, expert communications skills), and, more generally, to support and perpetuate clear, concise, creative, honest, lively, stylish, compelling writing everywhere. With “Word Wise,” I hope you’ll challenge me, challenge other readers, make suggestions, argue minutiae, add commentary, exchange ideas, and help all of us become the best writers we can be.