So as editors, we often chat out grammar issues, quirks and general things that bug us. One of the recent topics of such a chat was random capitalization. So part of knowing what to capitalize and what not to capitalize (that is the question) is being able to identify proper nouns, and Local editor Kim found this amazing video to help us figure it out. Thanks Kim.
Hey all,
I'm going to take it easy on the grammar lesson this week. I thought we'd take the time to talk about something we all use all the time -- attribution. So something we are complete sticklers about (as if you haven't noticed) is that all stats and research need to be accompanied by a link. The ideal format is as follows: According to a (if you can say a date, even better) study done by The Pew Research Center (insert link to Pew on phrase The Pew Research Center or in parenthesis after), Inman has the best and brightest contributors on the planet. However, sometimes you will see a stellar stat on a random blog, and you want to use that stat in your next article. That's all well and good, but it's unlikely that the blogger who wrote the post conducted any form of research much less is reporting the findings on a blog rather than a scientific journal. Quoting a blogger instead of a reputable resource leads to what I like to call an editorial rabbit hole. (It's similar to trying to prove facts found on Wikipedia, but a Wikipedia rabbit hole is a tale for a different day See: wolves -- enough said.) So try to think of all bloggers on the same level as Wiki, and look deeper into where they got their info. Usually they link to it; sometimes it facilitates a Google search of the stat in question. And if it's done after you have written your article, there's a chance that the stat will be removed, which cuts out the meat of your point and makes the article less substantial. So my suggestion for creating a well-researched and well-read piece is to include links to your stats. Then when you write the sentence with a stat, begin it with "According to _______." That saves everyone from any kind of rabbit hole and makes your piece strong. |
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