11 posts tagged “spelling”

Oprah Winfrey was named for Orpah in the Hebrew Bible, but a spelling mistake led to her unique name, one which is in the global consciousness today. (Search for Orpah and Google asks if you are searching for Oprah.) I’m sure she’d be thrilled to find out that the spelling has been fixed by ABC News:

Linda-Joy pointed me to this article about John Simm in The Independent:

Who on earth is John Simms? A bit embarrassing to have a typo in the headline.
   I assume he is also known to the fictional New Zealand locksmith–prime minister, ‘John Keys’, whom Dr Pita Sharples of the Māori Party has referred to from time to time.

Remember how a few weeks back, I chided Examiner.com for a poorly written review of District 9? The writer of the review told us how a chap called ‘Neill Blomcamp’ directed the film, and invented new words such as gansters, prolifigate, demonstate and permissiable. I still wonder if a prolifigate is where pro-lifers meet up.
   It looks like the site never really checks things. Its latest review is a bit better when it comes to spelling and word usage, but it still has some mistakes, such as ‘the Nazi’s outlined treatment of the Jews during WWII’ (which Nazi?). Less forgiveable, however, are the first two words which begin the review. There, I see that Neill Blomkamp’s name is now ‘Neil Bomkamp’:

Examiner writers and editors: repeat after me. Neill Blomkamp. Neill Blomkamp. Neill Blomkamp. Now, write that out 50 times on the blackboard till you get it right.

This is from the Willis Street site, and I quite like the image and the typeface choice:

   English might be my second language, but I am pretty sure there is no such word as restauranter.
   Unless there’s a new word out there for someone who builds restaurants, and that the 222 Willis Street location is prime for that construction.
   But a website with a non-existent English word, no big deal.
   I mean, it’s not as if there’s a one-storey-high sign in central Wellington with the same mistake. Aw crap.

The writer of this review of District 9, Andrew Ricks Jr, has good phrasing, and seems to know his stuff. However, it reveals that someone did not do any checking at the Examiner, whether it’s the writer (I am the first to admit it is difficult to proof your own stuff on-screen), the proofreader (who should be skilled enough to do this) or an editor (who really should be). And this paragraph is where I stopped reading because I was way too put off by the errors:

With my tongue firmly in my cheek, I must make these nine points.
   1. What are gansters?
   2. Which single African nation is the writer referring to?
   3. Is a prolifigate where pro-lifers gather?
   4. Must be the French spelling of activities.
   5. It is shakiest ground?
   6. What is permissiable?
   7. I haven’t seen the film, but I am pretty sure director Neill Blomkamp will be delighted to know this is how his name is spelt.
   8. I know, sometimes I am insenstive about these things.
   9. Which other is he referring to?
   10. A demonstate must be a pretty evil place to live.
   My worry behind this is that kids will grow up thinking having a dozen errors in a paragraph is OK for communication, when the reality is that it is distracting and does not serve the purpose of communicating.
   Our publications are not perfect but I don’t think we mess up this much.
   I have even been nice here because in print, we would have to mark all the “dumb” apostrophes.

How embarrassing for sits vac site Seek:

No one taught the copywriter how to pluralize.
   And this may be Firefox’s fault, but when I tried to find out more about Seek, I got a page with this gibberish: It doesn’t give me that much faith in the service.

This has got to be one of those bad journalism moments:

Specifically, the report states (sic):

Analysts say its small-car technology can help Chrysler, known for its minivans and Hummer line. In the past five years, Fiat has been able to regain market share in Europe with its economy fuel-saving cars as well as its luxury line, Alpha Romero.

   I’m sure Chrysler would love to know it owns Hummer and have extra headaches about what to do with that brand, and do Alpha Romeros have anything to do with actor Cesar Romero?

Warehouse Stationery Kilbirnie blames the landlord for this one.
   Or it could refer to the fact that a warehouse is an immobile in legal terms, ergo Warehouse Stationary?
   And I am sure Vodafone loves its new typeface.

Shot last week, when it was still drizzly and miserable here in New Zealand. When the late former British prime minister Ted Heath suffered a pulmonary embolism back in 2003, to think, his family could have called Laytons. As you’ll see from their big Fiat van, looking almost like an ambulance with these colours, these folks specialize in Heathcare. So if your surname is Heath, and if you have a problem, and you can find them, then maybe you can hire Laytons.
   This van driver is unusual as (s)he has allowed a reasonable space between the van and the Porsche 911 in front—I witnessed a terrible incident of tailgating by a Laytons driver in June in Kilbirnie. Maybe the driver was in a rush as someone by the name of Heath had taken ill. ‘Heath emergency!’ they cried at Laytons HQ—and off they went, sliding down the firemen’s pole and dropping their fresh towels on the way.
   ‘We lost Ted Heath, but we won’t lose another Heath! Not on my watch!’ swore the driver.
   ‘Out of my way! I’m a Heathcare specialist!’ said the nurse, pushing aside doctors and British Airways stewards.

I was over at Kevin Roberts’ blog today—no, not where you’d expect someone like me to be. I was interested to note his huge use of American spellings in, for example, his post about the Eurostar. He begins (note even the U.S.):

Traveling by air in Europe is not quite as bad as the domestic pain involved in U.S. air travel, but it’s up there. That’s why over recent years, the Eurostar has become a Lovemark to me. The last time I had meetings in London, I traveled from Paris and back on the Eurostar, returning the same day. It’s two-and-a-half hours each way and you get to leave from the center of Paris and arrive in the center of London.

   All well and good. I don’t have a problem with American English on American blogs, or even those who opt to use it over British English.
   Just that Kevin does make a big deal down here about his Kiwiness, and he is English by birth. He even talks about the All Blacks on his blog. In neither country do people like American English. We just think it’s a bit odd, just as an American would get puzzled by our weird-ass spellings for manœuvre.
   When it comes to a personal brand, even the way you spell needs to be consistent.
   Unless he gives a different image for the American market?
   In which case, I would advise against it, as citoyens du monde. We need to have one personal brand worldwide.
   The reality is, probably, that the blog is written by an American colleague, in which case it really isn’t a personal blog, is it?