# Has the rule against added bolded or italicized text to quotes been relaxed? **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [June 6, 2012, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-the-rule-against-added-bolded-or-italicized-text-to-quotes-been-relaxed/624281 "2012-06-06T15:55:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2012, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-the-rule-against-added-bolded-or-italicized-text-to-quotes-been-relaxed/624281/1 "2012-06-06T15:55:33Z")
Glancing over the boards in the last few days I have noticed a few instances of people quoting other posts and adding emphasis via bold or italics to certain words to make a make a point. Has the rule against doing that been relaxed? No, I’m not going to specify a poster or post. Fuck the police and all that. ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2012, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-the-rule-against-added-bolded-or-italicized-text-to-quotes-been-relaxed/624281/2 "2012-06-06T16:00:38Z")
As far as I know, there’s never been a rule against it but there’s a gentleman’s agreement to note when the formatting has been introduced by the quoter. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2012, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-the-rule-against-added-bolded-or-italicized-text-to-quotes-been-relaxed/624281/3 "2012-06-06T16:01:33Z")
I don’t think we’ve ever moderated it when people for doing that. When you add editorial comments or change the actual text, that can change its meaning and mislead people, but if you add bolding or italics or underlining to clarify what part of the quote you are responding to I don’t think it has the same effect. In most instances people will add something like “my italics” when they do that anyway, and that reduces the chances of confusion. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2012, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-the-rule-against-added-bolded-or-italicized-text-to-quotes-been-relaxed/624281/4 "2012-06-06T16:03:02Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > No, I’m not going to specify a poster or post. Fuck the police and all that. “Snitches get stitches” has you worried? ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2012, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-the-rule-against-added-bolded-or-italicized-text-to-quotes-been-relaxed/624281/5 "2012-06-06T16:09:05Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > I don’t think we’ve ever moderated it when people for doing that. **I** have been mod-noted for that. I don’t remember by whom, though, so I can’t prove it. But I was en-fucking-raged. > [@Marley23 again](#): > > When you add editorial comments or change the actual text, that can change its meaning and mislead people, but if you add bolding or italics or underlining to clarify what part of the quote you are responding to I don’t think it has the same effect. In most instances people will add something like “my italics” when they do that anyway, and that reduces the chances of confusion. That’s typically what I do, and what I had done earlier in the same thread, only to forget in one post, which is why I was en-fucking-raged at the mod-note-but-not-warning. > [@kayaker](#): > > “Snitches get stitches” has you worried? :: idly toys with honey-badger cannon remote control:: :: sighs & puts it away for now :: That’s one. ETA: Thanks for answering the question, **Marley**. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2012, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-the-rule-against-added-bolded-or-italicized-text-to-quotes-been-relaxed/624281/6 "2012-06-06T16:14:18Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > **I** have been mod-noted for that. I don’t remember by whom, though, so I can’t prove it. But I was en-fucking-raged. I’ll see if I can figure it out. But I can’t remember moderating anybody just for adding italics or bolding for emphasis as opposed to making changes or adding snarky comments to the quoted text. We also allow the use of ellipses and non-editorial comments like “[snipped].” ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2012, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-the-rule-against-added-bolded-or-italicized-text-to-quotes-been-relaxed/624281/7 "2012-06-06T16:22:14Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > I’ll see if I can figure it out. You needn’t bother. I wasn’t complaining, just wondering. > [@](#): > > But I can’t remember moderating anybody just for adding italics or bolding for emphasis as opposed to making changes or adding snarky comments to the quoted text. We also allow the use of ellipses and non-editorial comments like “[snipped].” I’ve done all of those, though I prefer \ to ellipses. Ellipses are for Etruscans. ---
**Author:** ![Rhythmdvl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2012, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-the-rule-against-added-bolded-or-italicized-text-to-quotes-been-relaxed/624281/8 "2012-06-06T16:45:18Z")
What about the rule that all Skald posts must contain a poll and a bizarre hypothetical? :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![Satchmo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/satchmo/32/4223_2.png) [@Satchmo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Satchmo)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2012, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-the-rule-against-added-bolded-or-italicized-text-to-quotes-been-relaxed/624281/9 "2012-06-06T17:07:09Z")
> [@Rhythmdvl](#): > > What about the rule that all Skald posts must contain a poll and a bizarre hypothetical? :dubious: Yah, he almost never gets called on that. ---
**Author:** ![Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maggie_the_Ocelot)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2012, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-the-rule-against-added-bolded-or-italicized-text-to-quotes-been-relaxed/624281/10 "2012-06-06T17:09:05Z")
That rule only refers to OP’s. However, he’s clearly broken it in this case. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2012, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-the-rule-against-added-bolded-or-italicized-text-to-quotes-been-relaxed/624281/11 "2012-06-08T05:43:31Z")
> [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](#): > > That rule only refers to OP’s. However, he’s clearly broken it in this case. I’m sure the mods are giving him a break because it’s been a while. And they don’t want killer bees chasing them. ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2012, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-the-rule-against-added-bolded-or-italicized-text-to-quotes-been-relaxed/624281/12 "2012-06-09T13:33:49Z")
The overall approach to quote-boxes is that they need to be treated the same way that quotes are in any research paper: changes must be clearly identified. The use of … or [snip] to indicate text is omitted, the use of [sic] to indicate the text is unchanged, the annotation “bolding mine” and so forth. When the violation is minor grammatical, we don’t usually care much. When the alteration of the quoted text is significant, we do care.