I’ve come to expect (but not necessarily accept) the fact that your stories lack depth and detail (except in entertainment reporting). That’s why you’re called “Headline” News. While I understand that you must lean more toward “entertainment” than news, I care more about what the UN is doing than about the new tatoo on Mike Tyson’s face.
I’ve even grudgingly accepted that you report as gospel anything the government says, and present Public Relations releases from corporate interests as fact. I’ve even tolerated your lengthy commercial segments about “gift ideas” and “exciting new products” within the broadcast around the holidays, even though it makes you look more like QVC than a news program.
But the spelling errors and typos must stop!
Hey, I’m a piss-poor speller myself. It’s no shame. However, when I’m writing for a formal purpose, I’ve been known to use a a marvelous new invention called a “dictionary” to get the correct spelling of a word. I know, I know . . . books are cumbersome, and may cause you to get odd looks from your co-workers if they see you holding one, but you can also try using “Spell Check” on your PC. You see, your ticker is seen by millions of people, and sometimes, people can be irritated when they see glaring errors. It just looks sloppy.
A few of tips: “Penniless” is not spelled with a “Y” and an apostrophe and an “S” does not make a word a plural. Use “An” before a word which begins with a vowel, instead of “A.” Honestly, I learned all of these things before I reached high school, and I suspect that one needs a degree in journalism to work at your station.
It might be nice to proof-read your work before broadcast.
A few times, the ticker is nearly incomprehensible. Perhaps you could show your wording to someone else. If it doesn’t make sense to a co-worker, most likely, it won’t make sense to the public, either.
Your network is doing a little better recently, but I’ve noticed a distressing amount of “goofs” when it comes to cueing audio and video. I’ve seen high school journalism class broadcasts do better.
One last thing . . . I really don’t give a good goddam what “John in Peoria” thinks about the current situation in Iraq. What purpose does it serve to have America e-mail their opinions on current situations to you to be read on the air? I don’t think your show needs an editorial from Average Joe.
