Another Language Hater

27 December 2011

Ron Rosenbaum of Slate has joined the crowd of those who take badly aimed pot shots at linguistic ingenuity. He has a list of bad “catchphrases” of 2011. Most of them aren’t catchphrases. (He really should learn what a catchphrase is before writing about them.) Most are much older than 2011. And most aren’t bad. (Evidently the only qualification for “bad” is that Ron Rosenbaum doesn’t like it.)

What bothers me isn’t that people have peeves about language. Everyone does (me included). What bothers me is that the editors of Slate would think one man’s uninformed opinion is of interest to anyone else.

Oh, and repurposing isn’t a Briticism (plus it’s been around since the mid-1980s). If you’re going to print a rant based on one man’s idiosyncratic opinions, at least fact check it.

Slate Afterword: AHD and Future of Print Dictionaries

17 December 2011

Slate has a new podcast, Afterword, that features nonfiction books and their authors. Today’s episode is an interview with Steve Kleinedler, executive editor of the American Heritage Dictionary.

Kleinedler and host June Thomas discuss the new fifth edition of the AHD, including new slang terms like asshat, how words are chosen for deletion to make room for new words, and the future of the print dictionary. Although to be fair, despite the headline announcing the dictionary, the discussion of the future of print lexicons is brief and perfunctory.

"A Way With Words" Fundraiser

13 December 2011

I’ve written about the radio show/podcast A Way With Words before. It’s a fun, informative, and commercial-free hour each week, hosted by word mavens Martha Barnette and Grant Barrett.

At the moment, Grant and Martha are in the midst of a fundraising appeal. If you are so inclined, clicking on the link and making a tax-deductible* contribution this holiday season would help keep this educational resource on the air and on the net.

*At least in the U. S.; I don’t know the tax implications for other countries.

I Can Haz Language Play?

10 December 2011

Jill Vaughan and Lauren Gawne give a talk on LOLspeak at the 2011 Australian Linguistics Society annual conference.

The talk is a good example of how a silly and fun internet fad can demonstrate some rather sophisticated linguistics concepts and how ordinary people are very sophisticated in their use of language. But don’t expect lots of hilarious examples of LOLspeak. There are a few, but the talk is an academic discussion of a light-hearted phenomenon.