I’m always amused by poor writing, especially in broadcasting. There’s inexperience, which can be forgiven of course. And then there’s just plain sloppiness. I get a giggle out of noticing them and always regret not keeping the ones I find. I foolishly think I will remember them.
This unfortunate sentence greeted me on the national news wire one recent morning: “Police in Regina say it appears the 17-year-old girl who fell to her death at an arts centre may have been an accident.” What they meant to say was, Police in Regina say the death of a 17-year-old girl who fell at an arts centre may have been an accident. Instead, they ended up insinuating that she was the result of an unplanned pregnancy.
This one grabbed me on Monday: “Matthews promises to lay out an “action plan” to overhaul health care to try to lower costs and trim the $16-billion deficit in a speech to the Board of Trade.” Wow. Somehow giving a speech to the Board of Trade will trim the deficit! That would have been avoided by starting the sentence with, “In a speech to the Board of Trade….” instead of ending it that way.
I heard a very inexperienced broadcaster (so she is forgiven) describe the chronic illness, MS, this way. “So and so has suffered from MS which is a chronic disease affecting the neurological system for 17 years.” So, I thought to myself, if it only lasts 17 years maybe she can get through it!
I’m not perfect. I hope I catch most of my errors before I go public. These examples are proof that one needs to proof read – critically. And often.
Oh man, im neever writting u agin.
Check out http://www.worldwidewords.org . A website from the UK which has a weekly newsletter with a section called Sic. Subscribers send in print, etc. screw-ups similar to the ones you mentioned. Some of them are really weird and they can be from top of the line newspapers, networks, online or printed.