Posts Tagged ‘headlines’
R.I.P., copy-editors and fact-checkers…
To begin this morning, a blast from the past, by way of saying Happy Mother’s Day! Now to more serious matters…
It’s only natural that, as traditional news organizations shutter bureaus and slash staff, “anomalies” will begin to creep into their reportage– misleading lay-outs, confusing grammar and syntax, outright mistakes… Consider for example coverage of the big story of May 1…
The Boston Globe‘s story about Osama bin Laden’s death tripped on a homophone: “according to Islamic tradition, his body was washed, wrapped in a white shroud, and given burial rights”; while the Daily Telegraph may have confused readers about the objectives of the attack: “Mr Panetta also told the network that the US Navy Seals made the final decision to kill bin Laden rather than the President.”
(Perhaps, in the heat of the moment, the Seals muddled “Osama” with “Obama”, as some other news outlets did.)
These examples, and others, at World Wide Words. And for a running account of the erosion underway, follow @themediaisdying. (More amusing headlines here.)
As we return to perfecting our Flipboard formats, we might recall that it was on this date in 1951, in New York City, that Hart, Shaffner, and Marx introduced a new sartorial technology: the first men’s suit made with polyester fiber– a blend of 55% Dacron and 45% worsted wool. (It was another decade before the introduction of the leisure suit, and yet another before it became a cultural landmark.)
The Annals of Radical Juxtaposition: Special Journalism Edition…
From Jim Fallows’ always-illuminating Atlantic blog, “Many Mental Patients Simply Walk Out“:
I mentioned yesterday that I was “sure” it was an “accident” that the NYT juxtaposed two stories on its home page about artificial-heart devices. The first story said that former VP Cheney had gotten one; the second, that too many people were getting them.
Reader Mike Diehl says that I was correct to put the air quotes (OK, electronic quotes) where I did. He writes:
>>Had I seen that, I would not have had a doubt the pairing was intentional. I still have a copy of the New York Times from August 8, 1974 — one day before Richard Nixon resigned the presidency. On the front page at the bottom is a photo of Nixon, walking from the Executive Office Building to the White House, juxtaposed with an article headlined, “Many Mental Patients Simply Walk Out.”
Searching for this page, which I am delighted to have found and am attaching here, I note that quite a number of articles on mental health facilities were published in the paper that summer, several making the front page. Two front-page pieces I found are adjacent to articles on Nixon, but none so juicy as the one I cite above. However, on July 31, a front-page piece by Lawrence van Gelder headlined “Mental Patient Held As Church Arsonist” is sandwiched between two articles on Watergate, one headlined “President Surrenders 11 Tapes to Sirica,” the other a reproduction of the text of Impeachment Article III. Coincidence? I think not.
As a graphic designer, I’m aware the opportunities to make such a wry statement with mere page layout are rare, but the New York Times is no stranger to the practice.<<
click image above, or here, to enlarge
On a vaguely-related (and marginally-suitable-for-work) front, readers might enjoy “15 Funniest Accidentally Naughty Headlines,” e.g…
As we ponder the future of journalism, we might recall that it was on this date in 1997 that the Italian government issued the 1,000 Lire coin, the reverse side of which features a European map on which Germany (which reunited in 1990) is shown as still divided into East and West. The coins were discontinued the following year.
Old habits, dying hard…
From the afore-cited and ever-amusing Criggo.com (“Newspapers are going away. That’s too bad.”) TotH to Miss Cellania.
As we realize that it’s time to get to work on our New Year’s resolutions, we might pause to wish the happiest of birthdays to Samuel Langhorne Clemens, aka Mark Twain; he was born on this date in 1835 in Florida, Missouri.
Clemens began his career as a newspaper man– first as a typesetter, then as a reporter. But he had no fear of new technologies: he was the first author to submit a typewritten manuscript to his publisher.
Sic!…
From the ever-amusing (and ever-illuminating) Michael Quinion and Wide Wide Words:
The news ticker on the BBC site on 10 August read “Police chase man killed by train”. This was not a report of post-mortem athleticism: the first three words make up a noun phrase – the police chased a man, who was then killed by a train…
A similar confusion surrounds a headline found on the website of the Vancouver Province on 5 August: “Archeologist shoots dead rampaging polar bear”…
The story in the Sydney Morning Herald last Monday, on the other hand, is merely badly phrased: “Turks are notorious for breaking out into gunshots to celebrate weddings and sports victories”…
The headline on the website of The Daily Caller of Miami seems to imply a multifunction weapon: “Boy chases away man who shot his dad with kitchen knife.”
As we hesitate before committing to a headline, we might wish a joyeux anniversaire to writer and film-maker Alain Robbe-Grillet, whose first novel, The Erasers (Les Gommes) earned him the praise of eminent critics like Roland Barthes and (in retrospect) the title “father of the Nouveau Roman.”
You must be logged in to post a comment.