How to prepare for the Dow Jones News Fund editing test

Students attend an editing bootcamp at Temple University. The week of training is part of the Dow Jones News Fund internship program. (Photo by Margo Reed) It's Dow Jones season. That's when journalism students apply for internships with the Dow Jones News Fund. Interns will work at over 100 news organizations across the United States…

Doctors of style

For many years, I've done an exercise in my editing class at UNC-Chapel Hill in which students debate a style choice. Past examples have included mic or mike as a short form for microphone, and whether to use the offensive nickname of Washington's NFL team. This semester, I asked the students to consider whether the…

Swearing in a new style

The good people at ACES: The Society for Editing invited me to write a guest post for their website. The topic: style guidelines and the Biden-Harris administration, which will take office this week. Here's the nut graph: The transfer of power requires editors to make decisions on word choices. That’s especially necessary given the historic…

What we can learn about word choice from two tweets

For many of us, Twitter is a place that is more forgiving when it comes to errors in spelling, grammar and usage. We all make mistakes now and then, and we don't have editors to back us up. Twitter famously lacks an "edit" function, so once a tweet is posted, you can't change it. News…

A North Carolina town’s wise choice

A new government recently took power in Carrboro, North Carolina — at least in name. The town, which is home to about 20,000 people, is now ruled by a Town Council instead of a Board of Aldermen. The Carrboro council is typical of local governments in North Carolina, consisting of six members and the mayor.…

Student guest post: AP Stylebook neglects terminology for sex work

Students in MEJO 557, Advanced Editing, are writing guest posts for this site this semester. This is the fifth of those posts. Anna Farmer is a junior majoring in journalism and minoring in Hispanic studies. She is a waitress and bartender at Sup Dogs in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. In her free time, she enjoys…

Winter break

As I grade final exams and wrap up the fall semester at UNC-Chapel Hill, I am taking a break from this site until January. I hope that you enjoy the holiday season and that you avoid the clichés that come with it. Thanks, as always, for reading. See you in 2020.

Things are looking up on Dictionary Day

Today is Dictionary Day. It takes place each year on the birthdate of lexicographer Noah Webster. When my grandmother died in 2012, I inherited her dictionary and its stand. The dictionary is Webster's Third New International Dictionary, published in 1961. It's in my office at UNC-Chapel Hill. Although I usually go to Merriam-Webster's website to…

Book review: ‘Dreyer’s English’

Dreyer’s English: An Utterly Correct Guide to Clarity and Style. New York, NY. Random House, 2019. 279 pp. $25.00. ISBN: 978-0-8129-9570-1 Many people, including journalism students, want firm rules on how to write and edit, but English is messy with gray areas and endless debates over commas. That’s where stylebooks and other usage manuals step…

Student guest post: It’s time for euphemisms to kick the bucket

Students in MEJO 557, Advanced Editing, are writing guest posts for this site this semester. This is the 17th of those posts. Molly Sprecher is a junior double-majoring in reporting and English and Comparative Literature. She works as a digital intern for the General Alumni Association and as the publicity editor and assistant photo editor…