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20 nagging errors made by the experienced and inexperienced alike
By Katie Antonsson The Washington Post‘s Bill Walsh schooled copy editors this morning on all the classic mistakes they make, citing 20 frequent and nagging errors made by the experienced and inexperienced alike. They are wide-ranging grievances, from frequent punctuation faux pas to newfangled phrases that are undeniably growing popular. Read on for Walsh’s full list. 1) “One of…
Read MoreFairness, accuracy of language key when covering Jenner interview
By Brady Jones Friday night ABC News will air Diane Sawyer’s interview with Olympic decathlon champion Bruce Jenner. Though specific details of the much hyped interview are scarce, many expect the Kardashian patriarch will discuss gender identity. Words and how we use them have immense power, and newsrooms and publications may have questions regarding transgender…
Read MoreCutting through cop talk
By Emily Necciai Everyone needs an editor, even the police. Todd Kistler, the news slot at California McClatchy Multiplatform Desk, understands the frustration and difficulty reporters and copy editors have with “cop talk,” but he knows how to get through it. He explained in his session at ACES 19th national conference that reporters and copy…
Read More9 tips for editing the German airline crash
By Melissa McCoy The news that a young German co-pilot appears to have intentionally crashed a Germanwings jet into the Alps, killing all aboard, presents copy editors with challenges. How can your publication convey the news without further sensationalizing an already sensational story? When mental illness is a key part of the coverage, what can…
Read MoreGetting it right on mental health begins with facts and language
By Emily Necciai Arthur Miller once said, “a good newspaper is a nation talking to itself.” With the nation talking about the Germanwings airplane crash in Europe, the “Getting It Right on Mental Health and Suicide” session presented Friday at ACES national conference couldn’t have been more appropriate. Melissa McCoy, an independent media consultant, began…
Read MoreOptimizing for search or social: Is there a trade off?
By Hannah Barling Would you rather be clickbait or Google friendly? You don’t have to choose. While there is a difference in the way SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and SMO (Social Media Optimization) are processed when people are searching for content, the way you format your content for each does not have to differ. So…
Read MoreA bulletproof workflow for data-driven stories
By Dilane Mitchell There is only one way to create bulletproof a data-driven story: thoroughness. Mark J. Rochester, deputy managing editor of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, presented ACES national conference attendees Friday with a series of steps and tools that can help publications generate factually sound, data-driven stories. The writing of a data-driven story will actually…
Read MoreZimmer: On hashtags, emoji, language trends, and how words will disappoint the sticklers
By Katie Antonsson Ben Zimmer, executive editor of Vocabulary.com, Wall Street Journal columnist, chair of the American Dialect Society New Words Committee, and general renaissance man of all things wordy, delivered a wide-ranging, always humorous, and occasionally musical keynote address at the ACES 2015 banquet. Ben Zimmer delivers the keynote address at ACES 19th national…
Read MoreAdvice on how to get the job you want
By Katie Antonsson Running a panel on the nebulous world of internet publishing, Maggie Walter (University of Missouri School of Journalism), Shana McNally (Costco), and Emmy Favilla (BuzzFeed) explained just what it takes to secure a job in copy editing in this day and age. Walter’s overarching advice: “Outwork the guy next to you.” When…
Read MoreHistory of English gives copy editors lesson in how to work with it
By Dilane Mitchell Copy editors tend to look at language as written, but the spoken word is king. The spelling of words follow pronunciation. Modern English, however, is a written language. Few people really speak that way. Kory Stamper talks about the history of the English language at an ACES session on Thursday. The development…
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