Language Corner
Small bites
Making big numbers more understandable
By Merrill Perlman Jun 17, 2013 at 03:00 PM
The wildfires are at it again: One near Colorado Springs was really big. How big? CNN said it was about... More
New math
Keeping numbers simpler
By Merrill Perlman Jun 10, 2013 at 02:28 PM
Last week, we talked about how the words used to express numbers can help (or confuse) readers. Now, let's talk... More
Countdown
Help with numbers
By Merrill Perlman Jun 3, 2013 at 03:00 PM
Math is hard for many people, though it's often not the numbers that cause so many problems, but the words... More
Between ‘us’ and ‘I’
Getting stuck on plurals
By Merrill Perlman May 28, 2013 at 03:00 PM
The editors were discussing a story about the health benefits of a particular type of cactus, and maybe others. The... More
Pleas-ing words
Prepositions and crime
By Merrill Perlman May 20, 2013 at 03:00 PM
One man "pleaded guilty to DWI." Another "pled guilty of DWI." A third "entered a plea of guilty to DWI... More
Grammar police
Zealousness over correctness
By Merrill Perlman May 13, 2013 at 03:00 PM
The New York Times recently posted an opinion piece and a short film about a "vigilante copy editor" who was... More
Letter perfect
Why English is so hard
By Merrill Perlman May 6, 2013 at 03:00 PM
The cashier at the fancy foods store was from Bosnia. "I have so much hard time with English," she said.... More
Language Corner
Plum loco
By Merrill Perlman May 1, 2013 at 12:00 AM
The witness, according to the news story, said the robbers were "plum crazy." Not unless they were robbing a green... More
Participial con-fusion
When possession is the law
By Merrill Perlman Apr 30, 2013 at 06:50 AM
WARNING: Grammar lesson ahead. If you ever knew what a "participle" was, you may have forgotten. Same with the word... More
Natal gazing
Of birth, and being borne
By Merrill Perlman Apr 22, 2013 at 03:00 PM
"I don't know nothing about birthing babies!" Butterfly McQueen told Vivien Leigh in Gone With the Wind. Those who believe... More
Writing tics
The optics of metrics
By Merrill Perlman Apr 15, 2013 at 02:51 PM
The mayor's op-ed piece urged action on a regional 911 system, which, among other things, would "provide consistent and transparent... More
Blame excuses
Where to point the finger
By Merrill Perlman Apr 8, 2013 at 03:43 PM
"Deer Creek blames fire on science experiment," read one headline. "Arsonist blames fire on living conditions," said another. Some people... More
Season openers
Baseball terms and myths
By Merrill Perlman Apr 1, 2013 at 03:00 PM
Major league baseball season gets under way this week, so let's throw out the first ball, left-handed. That's called "southpaw."... More
Unpalatable
A plateful of similar words
By Merrill Perlman Mar 25, 2013 at 03:00 PM
The artists were being praised for their technique in which, the article said, they "use only pallet knives, not brushes."... More
Worldly goods
Badly needed reminders
By Merrill Perlman Mar 18, 2013 at 03:00 PM
English teachers used to drill into students that they did not "feel good." They "felt well." It was the corollary... More
#Realtalk: This isn’t another ‘golden age’ for print - But it is one for media
Social media in smaller markets - How three social media managers deal with smaller markets and more local coverage.
A rally for laid-off Sun-Times photogs - A protest Thursday morning drew about 150 picketers to the newspaper’s headquarters
Reporting, or illegal hacking - Scripps reporters are accused of violating the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act
Exchange Watch: California Dreaming - Low healthcare premiums on the West Coast were trumpeted as a big, good-news Obamacare story. But: “Compared to what?”
One of the great reporters of his generation died Tuesday at 33. The stories he wrote, and the ones he didn’t live to write
Michael Hastings: my friend and his enemies
Hastings was fearless and shook things up - especially with his McChrystal expose. The haters in the media couldn’t forgive him
Journalism is about finding flaws and magnifying them, and surely someone who would spill massive loads of state secrets must contain a few broken parts, right?
Call it the Politico rhetorical crutch
The inside-the-beltway publication’s go-to phrase
Rachel Maddow’s tribute to Michael Hastings
“Michael was angry … he was angry about things that weren’t right in the world. He was angry with war and with loss, and that drove his reporting.”
CJR's Guide to Online News Startups
Uptown Messenger – Hyperlocal news for a neighborhood in New Orleans
Who Owns What
The Business of Digital Journalism
A report from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism
Questions and exercises for journalism students.
