detours on way to grammar’s house

Ian
August 14, 2013
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Chilling and compelling quotes on CNN.com this morning from preportedly verified anonymous online Q&A (I know how that sounds) with abduction victim Hannah Anderson.

Obviously the most important questions are, Is she all right? What really happened? And, of course, Is this account of an ask.fm anonymous Q&A with her true?

I can’t answer, but I can say that — maybe in the interest of speed — atrocious copywriting errors by CNN itself were left in. Let’s get this right, people. It’s actual news about something really bad (emphasis below is mine).

Hannah Anderson did what any teenage girl would do after a life-changing ordeal: she discussed it with peers online. …
Dawn MacNabb, whose son is one of her closest friends, confirmed to the Associated Press that the postings on ask.fm were by Hannah. She said her son spoke on the phone with Hannah on Tuesday and urged her to delete some of the postings.

And …

The California teenager was rescued Saturday after family friend DiMaggio held her hostage for a week after killing her mother and brother. Her frantic search stretched from southern California to the Idaho wilderness …

The most interesting question is what does it mean when peer-to-peer media can replace news media as a newsbreaking source. In this case, it wasn’t breaking news that happened via social media (like we saw with the Hudson River plane landing or the Abbottabad raid on bin Laden), it was the press conference.

But just because newsmakers are becoming their own newsbreakers and social tools can now be media tools doesn’t mean standard media should stop using words properly.

UPDATE: Since the above was drafted, both errors were corrected. Text now says, “… whose son is one of Hannah’s closest friends” and “The frantic search for the teenager stretched from ….”

Zeynep Tufekci in today’s @nytopinion

March 7, 2024

4. Accountability avoidance

It makes you (the "child") feel guilty and "bad" for holding someone (the "adult") accountable for their harmful actions.

It also changes the subject from an objective harmful action (voting for a divisive, hate-filled, or antidemocratic agenda, for instance) to the subjective realm of "being friends" and the emotional safety that comes from preserving social bonds..

March 2, 2024

"The courage of individuals like Bobi Wine and Navalny reminds us of a better world." - Moses Bwayo, director, #BobiWinethePeoplesPresident, Oscar nominee for Best Documentary

February 24, 2024

My WISH for ETs doesn't make it more likely that one of a zillion sightings turns out to be a real one. But somehow it feels like common sense to say, "With ALL those sightings? You're claiming not even ONE is real? How likely is that?? Do you even know MATH?"

It’s so easy to use the vibes of logic in the service of self-flattery.

January 14, 2023

People have asked me to explain those lame New York Times headlines.

One possibility: midlevel editors believe their instructions are to say what happened without sounding like the opposition. This is tripping them up because merely to state what Trump is doing sounds the alarm and feels oppositional—since it is so extreme and threatening.

The result: weak or misleading headlines that have to be changed.

January 7, 2024

Jed Miller

detours on way to grammar’s house

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