Saturday, April 21, 2007
Two down, one to go
Hard to believe, but the last day of the conference is here. As my mama would say, all good things must come to an end, but that's really not true in this case. ACES members can carry what they have learned back to their newsrooms and perhaps more importantly, can take new friendships home to their email contact lists. One of the best parts of gathering each year is renewing those friendships. For me, it has always been a little like walking into a family reunion in that you know everyone in the room has at least one thing in common with you. And that's a good thing.
Mike's -- yikes
This is all Tim's fault. If he wasn't so awesome, he wouldn't have won the Robinson Prize, and then we wouldn't have had to go out and celebrate all night at Mike's Irish Pub. You know it's time for bed when you and your co-workers are swapping stories about the first concert you attended. (Melissa's was AC/DC -- who knew she was so hard core?) :-)
The story so far
Wow! Every year, I'm impressed by the dedication of the people who come to this conference. The people I've been talking with this year during the sessions, after the sessions, in the halls, and (OK, I'll admit it) at Mike's Bar are intensely interested in the language, the state of copy editing, and the future of journalism.
That's no surprise. But it's great to hear people draw away from the daily minutiae and put in their 2 cents' worth, or more (much more), about how we got to where we are, where we're headed, and why we should be headed somewhere else. And what the Internet means for the future of print. And how we can get people to read what we're putting in the paper. And how to get the stuff right that we're putting in the paper. And on and on.
These are thoughts that top-level managers need to hear. They need to understand that we're not just robots putting out the paper day to day; we're as concerned as they are about the future of journalism.
ACES will be exploring more ways to make our message heard; and ideally, we'll get some of these guys to our next conference to hear your thoughts in person.
Tonight we heard from some of our own at the banquet. Inspirational messages from Hank Glamann; this year's Aubespin scholarship winner, Matthew Dulin; J.A. Montalbano; and our Robinson Prize winner, Tim Lynch.
And how can I adequately say anything about Dave Barry? He spoke with tons of humor, of course, but he didn't avoid some of the touchy issues copy editors face in their newsrooms -- for instance, relations between the desk and reporters. You'll find reports elsewhere about that on the ACES site that do more justice to him than I can.
After he spoke, he could barely get out of the room, what with people wanting to talk, shake his hand, have their pictures taken with him, sign their books, have his name tattooed on their ... somehow I think I'd better get to bed and rest up for tomorrow.
That's no surprise. But it's great to hear people draw away from the daily minutiae and put in their 2 cents' worth, or more (much more), about how we got to where we are, where we're headed, and why we should be headed somewhere else. And what the Internet means for the future of print. And how we can get people to read what we're putting in the paper. And how to get the stuff right that we're putting in the paper. And on and on.
These are thoughts that top-level managers need to hear. They need to understand that we're not just robots putting out the paper day to day; we're as concerned as they are about the future of journalism.
ACES will be exploring more ways to make our message heard; and ideally, we'll get some of these guys to our next conference to hear your thoughts in person.
Tonight we heard from some of our own at the banquet. Inspirational messages from Hank Glamann; this year's Aubespin scholarship winner, Matthew Dulin; J.A. Montalbano; and our Robinson Prize winner, Tim Lynch.
And how can I adequately say anything about Dave Barry? He spoke with tons of humor, of course, but he didn't avoid some of the touchy issues copy editors face in their newsrooms -- for instance, relations between the desk and reporters. You'll find reports elsewhere about that on the ACES site that do more justice to him than I can.
After he spoke, he could barely get out of the room, what with people wanting to talk, shake his hand, have their pictures taken with him, sign their books, have his name tattooed on their ... somehow I think I'd better get to bed and rest up for tomorrow.
Friday, April 20, 2007
Merrill's Minions
Now that the ACES auction is over, and I've finished writing a serious story about it for the main ACES Web page conference coverage, I can divulge these things: I did, in fact, try to bid up Merrill Perlman on a certain glass pitcher (as did several others), and Merrill knows how to play hardball. Just what did she promise you for guard work, Eileen? I also can divulge that at one point, I thought I was going to be buying a $60 pitcher I have no room for in my house. So Merrill, the ACES Education Fund, and a certain Quincy copy editor, both thank you for the contribution. (Now, why did I pay $25 for a DVD of "The Paper" when you can pick it up for $7.99 at Target?)
The "r" is silent in Deirdre
Education. It's what ACES is all about. :-)
Speaking of education, I learned a ton today. As a fairly recent graduate, I was excited to hear the exchange of ideas about journalism education at J School vs. Reality, and I was fascinated by the readership technology on display during Poynter's EyeTrack session.
Fun facts from EyeTrack07:
• Readers made it farther into stories of all lengths on the Web than in print.
• When tested for comprehension on the same set of facts presented three different ways (narrative, narrative/graphic hybrid and alternative story form), readers given the alternative story form scored highest.
• Readers like briefs, especially when they have a graphic element.
The star session this afternoon, though, was Editing Obituaries. Check out Jade Walker's Blog of Death when you get a chance.
Speaking of education, I learned a ton today. As a fairly recent graduate, I was excited to hear the exchange of ideas about journalism education at J School vs. Reality, and I was fascinated by the readership technology on display during Poynter's EyeTrack session.
Fun facts from EyeTrack07:
• Readers made it farther into stories of all lengths on the Web than in print.
• When tested for comprehension on the same set of facts presented three different ways (narrative, narrative/graphic hybrid and alternative story form), readers given the alternative story form scored highest.
• Readers like briefs, especially when they have a graphic element.
The star session this afternoon, though, was Editing Obituaries. Check out Jade Walker's Blog of Death when you get a chance.
Managing the language and managing change
I spent the afternoon at two varied sessions, both of which should be important to copy editors — Bill Walsh’s “Rules That Aren’t” and “Strategies for Changing Times,” a management track session led by the panel of Kenn Altine, Leslie Guevarra, Jennifer McNally and David Sullivan.
First, in an industry that is heavily focused on the changing nature and economy of newspapers, it’s gratifying to see you can still fill a room with nearly 100 people interested in grammar and style rules.
No one smashes the myths of English usage like Bill Walsh. In addition to his advice not to get too caught up in the split infinitive and active voice and using words like host as verbs in headlines, I thought the most interesting thing he said is this: Copy editors often see their role as stopping the evolution of the language, but that shouldn’t be their job. We should be applying the rules that exist in the most understandable fashion for our readers.
Another interesting point Walsh made relates to his observation about the Internet’s influence on the language. He said that possibly because people see so much unedited copy these days, it’s easier for us to let errors we formerly would have stopped prosper in print.
So while we should not stand in the way of the natural evolution of language, we also need to make sure the language doesn’t deteriorate from sloppiness.
After thinking about language, I moved on to a discussion of how managers quantify their workflows and live through issues like staff reductions and the added duties online editions are putting on the copy desk.
If you are asked by your management to quantify the copy desk workload, you might want to get in touch with David Sullivan at the Philadelphia Inquirer, who recently learned more about the value of his ongoing spreadsheet concerning copy desk work. There are a lot of ways you can track things, like by columns filled, errors by the copy desk per shift, deadlines busted, etc. One theme, though, is that most desks don’t know right now how to quantify the online workload.
Kenn Altine of Hearst Newspapers made the good point that we need to learn how to live with the changes, not rail against them, because the reality of life is change is here. We need to find ways to sell copy editors on the professional value of adding online editing skills.
I think, in the long run, it will be much easier to jump onboard now then to try and hold back the train. So all aboard.
First, in an industry that is heavily focused on the changing nature and economy of newspapers, it’s gratifying to see you can still fill a room with nearly 100 people interested in grammar and style rules.
No one smashes the myths of English usage like Bill Walsh. In addition to his advice not to get too caught up in the split infinitive and active voice and using words like host as verbs in headlines, I thought the most interesting thing he said is this: Copy editors often see their role as stopping the evolution of the language, but that shouldn’t be their job. We should be applying the rules that exist in the most understandable fashion for our readers.
Another interesting point Walsh made relates to his observation about the Internet’s influence on the language. He said that possibly because people see so much unedited copy these days, it’s easier for us to let errors we formerly would have stopped prosper in print.
So while we should not stand in the way of the natural evolution of language, we also need to make sure the language doesn’t deteriorate from sloppiness.
After thinking about language, I moved on to a discussion of how managers quantify their workflows and live through issues like staff reductions and the added duties online editions are putting on the copy desk.
If you are asked by your management to quantify the copy desk workload, you might want to get in touch with David Sullivan at the Philadelphia Inquirer, who recently learned more about the value of his ongoing spreadsheet concerning copy desk work. There are a lot of ways you can track things, like by columns filled, errors by the copy desk per shift, deadlines busted, etc. One theme, though, is that most desks don’t know right now how to quantify the online workload.
Kenn Altine of Hearst Newspapers made the good point that we need to learn how to live with the changes, not rail against them, because the reality of life is change is here. We need to find ways to sell copy editors on the professional value of adding online editing skills.
I think, in the long run, it will be much easier to jump onboard now then to try and hold back the train. So all aboard.
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