Newsletter and Grammar Coach

The tools of print and broadcast journalism have evolved over the years. Digital audio recorders replaced paper pads and No. 2 pencils. Desktop and laptop computers supplanted typewriters and carbon paper. Electronic video gear took the place of 16 mm film cameras. Digital printing technology superseded lead type. Despite all of those time-saving advancements, however, news reporters cling to one old contrivance: journalistic clichés.

Reporters gather information and write stories under deadline pressure. To meet those deadlines they take shortcuts as needed, relying heavily on fixed phrases that have become formulaic. While journalistic subject matter is, by definition, new and developing, the written content commonly is laced with frayed old phrases that reporters plug in to fill the blanks in their “breaking news” stories. As a result, many passages in news stories are stale and predictable.

For example, if guns have been fired, reporters habitually tell listeners and readers that shots rang out. Homes and office buildings don’t merely catch fire or become ignited. No, in news stories they burst into flames. The verb “burst” also is put to use in describing people who have experienced tragedy; they don’t merely cry, but rather burst into tears.

Turn, turn, turn

A person whose health is in decline due to illness or injury is said to take a turn for the worse. A patient whose condition further deteriorates may lapse into a coma. Improvement in the person’s condition may prompt reporters to announce that doctors are cautiously optimistic.

When a search is underway for someone, a reporter is likely to say that the person has turned up missing.

If someone dies in a burning building or in a forest fire, count on at least one reporter to announce that the fire has turned deadly. Of course, the fire didn’t change character; the victim had refused or been unable to evacuate. To announce the deaths of three people, reporters often are inclined to report that fire or other disaster claimed three lives.

One news story described a person who died after a lengthy bout with Alzheimer’s disease. The problem is that “bout” is the wrong word; a bout is a short period of intense activity or illness — as well as a term for a wrestling or boxing match.

By nature, reporters are always looking for new angles or updates on developing stories — any “hook” to impart a sense of immediacy. That explains why one broadcast journalist announced that the suspect is dead at this point — as if that were subject to change. At least the reporter stopped before uttering the full phrase at this point in time.

Unwillingness to say “I don’t know”

Journalists and news sources alike are reluctant to acknowledge when they lack information or understanding. To characterize something that hasn’t been identified yet, journalists are quick to plug in one of their favorite terms: mystery. When the water level of a lake in Pennsylvania subsided below expected levels, the local newspaper reported that “mystery surrounds the water-level drop at Woodcock Creek Lake.” Other examples are plentiful: “Mystery surrounds scrapbook of prominent NY doctor found behind San Antonio burger joint” (that headline failed to clarify that the scrapbook, not the doctor, was found behind the burger joint). “Mystery surrounds new grocery store in Brookfield” read one headline (under which the story about two new retail stores read, “Officials confirmed that one is a Food Emporium, but the identity of the other remains a mystery”). Another headline: “Mystery surrounds National Solar Observatory after facility suddenly shuts down over ‘security issue.’” That’s because the reason is shrouded in secrecy — another phrase that makes journalists’ typing fingers twitch in delight.

The article about the lake level drop also reported that officials from multiple agencies were “scrambling to determine the source of the problem.” The verb “scramble” means to move hurriedly or clumsily. The agencies likely were hurrying to evaluate the problem and determine the cause, but “scrambling” is an unfair and probably inaccurate cliché to describe the response of the agencies.

To indicate that city officials were secretive about the grocery store “mystery,” the writer used another recurring journalistic cliché in this sentence: “Officials are tight-lipped about the construction, but several hints suggest the new store could be one of the East Coast’s first Amazon Fresh grocery stores.

A newspaper story said that how the shooter obtained the weapon remains unclear. No, it’s not a matter of degree of clarity; police do not know (or are not revealing) how he obtained it. The shooter’s own recollection of how he obtained the weapon is perfectly clear. Another story reported that the suspect fled to an unknown area. No; the suspect, and perhaps other people, do know his location; police don’t know where the suspect is hiding.

In news reports, anything that has become uncontrollably large usually has reached epidemic proportions. Or it has grown exponentially. Earthquakes reduce buildings to rubble. Dangerous activities are not for the faint of heart. If people have no need for concern, their fears are unfounded. For a young athlete or actor who suddenly attains celebrity status, a book deal may be in the offing. An outcome that is uncertain remains to be seen, because only time will tell. After a report about an occurrence overseas, the phrase that introduces a subsequent item about news on U.S. soil nearly always is closer to home….

You know what’s coming

The preambles to many of these clichés are so predictable that readers and listeners often know what’s coming. See how many of these blanks you can fill in yourself.

1. The gunman in the warehouse shooting has been identified as a ________ former employee.
2. Some mortgage lenders have raised rates for their fixed rate mortgage products. Other lenders are expected to follow ________.
3. The officer involved in the shooting has been placed on _________  _________.
4. The commission has announced that it has launched a full-________ investigation into the agreements between four major electronic goods manufacturers and online retailers.
5. More than two weeks after the blaze started, firefighters have the ________ hand on the fire, which so far has scorched more than 15,000 acres.
6. A local man is behind bars in connection to a shooting. The arrest comes on the ________ of a surge in gun violence across the country over the holiday weekend.
7. The right-handed pitcher, who underwent surgery to repair multiple facial fractures suffered when he was hit by a pitch, is resting ________ at home.
8. The state has instituted a hiring freeze and for the first three months of the new budget year. Layoffs are not off the table, but the governor is holding out ________ that Washington will deliver.

The blanks are:

1. disgruntled
2. suit
3. administrative leave
4. fledged
5. upper
6. heels
7. comfortably
8. hope

To many journalists, small towns are invariably sleepy, or are tight-knit communities. Everything there was peaceful until tragedy struck. Although a stroke left a hospitalized patient unable to speak, she remains alert and upbeat. The shooting victim was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

And so it goes. These idiomatic phrases aren’t inherently flawed. They once were fresh and vivid, and most remain perfectly fine. The recurrent, habitual, formulaic use of these phrases in news stories is what makes them trite, however. Use them if you like, but sparingly and judiciously. And consider synonyms when possible to help keep readers engaged..

When retired food scientist Lou Grivetti decided to create a three-book set of his lecture notes spanning his five-decade career, he wanted to do so without the constraints that academic publishers impose.

Disaster prevention and hazard mitigation expert Robert A. Olson, who was instrumental in drafting key California seismic safety bills and shepherding them through the legislative process, wanted to relate the tumultuous history of the state’s earthquake safety legislation.

Civil engineer Larry Walker sought to write and publish a book documenting the rich history of his family, members of which were in the first wave of westward immigration to California in 1850, shortly after the discovery of gold.

Nguyen Van Hanh, who had served as a senior staff member for Nguyen Van Thieu, president of the Republic of Vietnam in Saigon, wanted to publish a book about his experiences as a Vietnamese refugee who rose to become director of California’s Office of Refugee Affairs and subsequently director of the U.S. Office of Refugee Resettlement.

Marriage and family therapist Susan Curry hoped to publish a children’s novel that she had written with her then-11-year-old granddaughter.

Otolaryngologist (ear, nose and throat doctor) and facial plastic surgeon Matthew Zavod conceived a book to help children overcome their fear of injections, but he needed an illustrator and a means to publish the book.

EditPros’ Book Prep publication preparation service helped them and many other people across the United States attain their book publishing vision. Book Prep has enabled clients to publish autobiographies, novels, family histories, children’s books, memoirs, anthologies, teaching guides, and emotional and spiritual self-help books. Writers who have published their work using Book Prep include teachers, scholars, scientists, military pilots, a psychic, a social worker and people from other backgrounds.

As part of the Book Prep package, EditPros professionally formatted the interior pages of each book, designed the covers, and readied them for print publication. The writers were able to choose among numerous book sizes and formatting options: paperback, hardcover, and hardcover with a jacket.

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LEARN MORE about the EditPros Book Prep service.

Jill E. wrote:

The grammar coach replies:

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