Words matter. Sticks and stones may break your bones but words can hurt, too.
So it is that on one side we have same-sex parents wanting some respect and on the other the supporters of ‘traditional’ family values (traditional in a very recent, Christian sense I think) wanting to hold the line. Because words do matter. And I can certainly see the point of not using ‘dad’ in a public pamphet when not every parent will
actually be a ‘dad’. Parent or partner is fine with me, it is more precise.
Now you may well be fuming about “political correctness gone mad”, but don’t be. As we just demonstrated, words matter. Back in the ’90s I worked in the field of ‘developmental disability’. Now you could say that ‘developmental
disability’ and its ally ‘delayed’ are just ‘politically correct’ ways
of saying “retarded”, but it’s more than that. “Retarded” is more
general, ‘developmentally delayed’ more specific. It also carries less
stigma, less weight, less baggage. And to those people who are
developmentally delayed – maybe 1 in 9, probably a lot more if we
counted every child affected by environmental toxins like lead,
cigarette smoke and junk food - it matters. Words matter. Words hurt.
Many times I assisted people with a disability into the wider community
and found such words used as weapons of abuse, contempt or, perhaps more
often, just thoughtlessly. ‘Let the retarded kid be served first’ was
mild but whispered (yet plainly heard) threats like “that retard should
have been killed at birth” abound. Just because you have a disability of
some sort (and we all have some disability if we look hard enough) it doesn’t follow that you aren’t a member of society and don’t have rights or feelings.
Point is, the words we use do matter, even if philosophically they
really shouldn’t. ‘Retarded’ should be innocuous. So should gay, black,
slope, Jew, Abo or wog (the list is endless). But the general community,
the media and those with narrower opinions and their own agendas have
added different, more negative meanings to such words. Thus was born what has become known as
‘political correctness’, an attempt to avoid words and terms that have
becomed confused, coloured or distorted by negative meanings.
Perhaps people are oversensitive to these things, but does that mean we
have to ignore their feelings? There’s a balance to be struck (I’ll let
Shakespeare off the hook for his stereotypes, for example, as that is
for dramatic effect) but in public documents I would favour careful,
neutral language over words that lead to exclusion. Having said that, I wouldn’t want to see something like the French
“Academy” overseeing the English language (or any language, actually) as
language should live and evolve 
And as for labelling, stereotypes and discrimination against people simply because of their differences… well we’d better have a pretty good reason to do it, one that is backed by reason and logic rather than emotion and prejudice – otherwise it’s just plain wrong.
That’s my 2 cents’ worth for the day!
NHS remove word ‘Dad’ from pregnancy handbook in case it offends same sex couples | Mail Online
The Health Service has removed the word ‘dad’ from a pregnancy handbook for fear of offending gay and lesbian parents.
Officials decided to use the term ‘partner’ throughout the 200-page guide, titled Ready Steady Baby, after receiving a complaint that ‘dad’ was discriminating against same-sex couples.
But the omission of the word has angered some campaigners who claim that traditional family values are being undermined.
OK, so Telstra doesn’t want to start a price war over NBN pricing – but there will be plenty of others offering better packages. So shop around, folks!
And in any case isn’t this a commercial decision by Telstra, to position their NBN product? I can understand the consumer-group argument that Telstra is trying to pull a fast one in some respects (by maintaining copper phone line charges in parallel with NBN charges for example, without volunteering that you don’t need both) but this choice of language – the cost ‘slugs’ and the ‘battling household’ malarkey is pure spin on the part of the Tele. Who needs to invent a crisis in politics when you have the on-going crisis in Aussie journalism?
Telstra’s $73 slug for NBN package | thetelegraph.com.au
BATTLING households will be slugged at least $73 a month for Telstra’s most basic National Broadband Network service – three times the cost spruiked by the federal government 14 months ago.
Are we really ‘forced’ to stay with Telstra? Nope.
Telstra’s $73 slug for NBN package | thetelegraph.com.au
Telstra will force customers to pay $49.95 a month for its slowest and most basic service and at least $23 a month to keep their phone line, even if they don’t want it.
So much for honest reporting. Again.
The back story here is that support for those caught out in the conversion from analog to digital television, the most vulnerable to this technological change, were always to be supported through the process. Be it a Labor or Coalition government, no-one was to be left behind, stranded with a dead and lifeless analog TV. Of course that’s now forgotten when the actual costs of that promise are met, but there you go. Apparently some people see no need to independently support people in this situation and would prefer that “the market” deal with those who can’t help themselves. We are talking about people who meet specific criteria of Federal Government financial support, including old-age or disability pensioners. The frail, the elderly, the vulnerable. Of course we could choose to ignore their needs and let them and their families sort it out, but then the news media would be all over the government anyway, reporting the regrettable but inevitable pensioner rip-offs, held over a barrel by unscrupulous installers. Hence the promise.
Yes, we could go out and buy a cheap set top box (STB) and install it ourselves for just the cost of the box and a bit of our time, but this program isn’t aimed at us, is it? So why does the Australian (and now Channel News) pretend that it is? Why label it as “waste” without making a careful, considered comparison first?
When we buy a cheap STB we hopefully realise that it won’t be a top-shelf bells and whistles product with rock-solid reliability and ease of use. We know it will be bare-bones, fiddly and probably a bit buggy, and we are prepared to live with that. We won’t get more than what’s in the box and a basic warranty. We’ll do the firmware upgrades ourselves and make any wiring changes as needed.
It won’t be suited to the target market of Centrelink clients, it won’t include Centrelink’s admin work or the advice of the specialist groups that sought a product based on target usage criteria, including ease of use for the elderly and those with vision or fine-motor impairment. It won’t include home installation and demonstration, nor will it include an in-home warranty or 12 months of phone support. So why pretend that it’s comparable?
You can see the real intent here, it’s not just the opinionated writing style or the lack of factual, realistic comparison – the target is clearly labelled. So why does Channel News name the supposed culprit as the “Labour (sic) Federal Government” rather than the department and other bodies concerned? Why choose to make unfair – indeed ludicrous – comparisons and pin it all on a “Labour” (sic) government? (Yes, they – Channel News – hilariously can’t even get the “Labor” bit right!)
Because they are grinding an axe? Yes, the program could be done cheaper. But would it hit the target? (And when it didn’t we’d get the inevitable whinge about waste, of course.)
Of course the Australian is on the defensive about this because they chose to pick up the story and leave out a few key facts, like the whole point of doing it in the first place. That’s OK, it’s all about waste and mismanagement, they say. Nothing to do with fair and honest reporting, apparently.
How A $19 Digital STB Becomes $698 When Installed By Federal Labour Government – Channel News
If you or I want to buy a digital set top box the cost could easily be under $49, but when the Labour Federal Government go out and buy thousands of the devices, they mysteriously cost $698 a box to connect.
According to the Australian newspaper every set-top box delivered under Labour’s digital TV rollout could be costing the taxpayer an average of $698 — almost double the government’s original estimate and more than 30 times the cost of a box bought from the likes of JB hi Fi.
They are even dearer than a Full HD 40″ TV which can be purchased for $399 from almost any consumer electronics retailer.
Household Assistance Scheme: The Facts | Senator Stephen Conroy | Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy
Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy Senator Stephen Conroy today said the Household Assistance Scheme, being rolled out as part of the switchover to digital television, was assisting some of the most vulnerable people across Australia.
The Scheme was developed in consultation with Vision Australia and received support from a specialist Consumer Expert Group, including Media Access Australia and CHOICE (full membership attached).
Media Access Australia is an independent not-for-profit organisation focused on increasing access to media for people with disabilities. CEO Alex Varley said the Scheme is a model for how government programs should be run.
“It has been designed in consultation with the people it will help and is sensitive and responsive to their needs,” (Alex Varley, 12 May 2011, Media Release, Media Access Australia).
The accreditation and registration process for installations has been developed in consultation with the industry: the Australian Digital Television Industry Association, which is the appropriate industry body, and various industry working groups.
Fact: the $350 figure is an average cost for the assistance package per household, not just for a set top box.
Conroy on the defensive as he reveals set-top costs up to $1500 | The Australian
THE cost of converting analog televisions to digital under the federal government’s set-top box scheme has ranged from $158 to $1528 for each installation.
In a statement released late yesterday, Communications Minister Stephen Conroy defended the costs of the scheme, saying the highest-cost conversions occurred in outback Queensland and involved a satellite dish, decoder and new wiring.
In a small country town, the cost was an average of $492, while it was as low as $158 for a household in a large regional city.
Price check on set-top boxes | The Australian
Senator Conroy declares our story is invalid because “it mixes actual costs with estimated costs”. We suggest the word the minister is looking for is not “mixes” but “compares”. Heaven help the taxpayer if Senator Conroy is seriously suggesting that the amount the government spends on a project should not be compared to the amount the government said it would cost.
It is yet another program characterised by waste and questionable probity. It joins other troubled schemes such as pink batt insulation, Grocery Choice, Fuel Watch and aspects of Building the Education Revolution. At a time of fiscal consolidation at home and austerity abroad, you would think the government would be less eager to waste money. Based on the available numbers, the scheme is costing double the original estimate and 30 times the cost of set-top boxes at stores.
Price check on set-top boxes | The Australian
Some critics may accuse this newspaper’s campaign against government waste and mismanagement as reflecting a “Tea Party” ideology. We reject this suggestion as governments across the world are now dealing with the consequences of failing to live within their means and are adopting a more prudent approach to state finances.
Yes, yes, I know, I’m overly pedantic. I also shouldn’t read this rubbish. (But if you do hanker after a selfish yet frugal sports car then a 1.6l engine in a light body is a good start.)
What actually caught my eye was yet another rendition of the “affect” vs “effect” saga:
Lotus’s new Club Racer
The Elise’s steering is not power assisted in any way, so every input you make using the steering wheel is instantly affected by the front wheels.
Affected? You could possibly, maybe, make a case for the front wheels affecting steering response but in this particular context surely the language-challenged Fairfax journo meant to write that each individual steering input is effected – ie put into effect – by the front wheels. Surely.
I mean, is it really that hard to correctly choose between effect and affect?
I know he’s just an amiable stooge for Tony Abbott in this anti-Carbon Tax malarkey (and I mean that in the nicest way) but surely even he can see that ‘proving’ that the coal industry in NSW will only grow by 60% of what it would have done without a tax isn’t very helpful to the anti-action denialist cause?
Firstly it’s still growing, but its predicted growth is simply reduced by 40% (yes, that’s loaded with assumptions and a timescale, too, so a large grain of salt is needed). Whereas if you take Tony Abbott at his word he expects the coal industry will be killed off completely. Now to my mind when something’s dead it ain’t growing at all. Whereas this coal mining beast is apparently still alive and kicking! And secondly, given that we will still consume energy and by all expectations grow in population to boot, it proves the tax works. Yes, coal declines and (here’s the flipside) resources are successfully diverted to the renewables sector. I thought Tony said it did nothing at all except create a money-go-round? How can Barry contradict Tony like this!
And I note that jobs created in the renewables sector aren’t mentioned at all. Bravo to the SMH for asking the question. There must be some jobs created to meet the gap created…. surely?
Carbon tax ‘will cost’ 31,000 NSW jobs
Mr O’Farrell said the tax would reduce the NSW mining industry’s growth to about 60 per cent of what it would have been.
Carbon tax ‘will cost’ 31,000 NSW jobs
The NSW government did not respond to the Herald’s questions about why the Treasury modelling appeared not to include potential jobs gained through the development of renewable technology.
Note also that “confidential” seemingly doesn’t have the meaning it once had:
Carbon tax ‘will cost’ 31,000 NSW jobs
The confidential cabinet document shows the federal tax will result in the loss of 1850 jobs in the Hunter region and 7000 fewer jobs would be created in the Illawarra. The central west would lose 1000 jobs.
Compare and contrast the Herald’s more balanced reporting with the Terrorgraph’s slanted, opinion-laden and more colourfully-worded “report“:
Julia Gillard’s power pledge an empty promise | thetelegraph.com.au
THE carbon tax will inflate electricity prices by up to $200 a year more than Julia Gillard promised, demolishing claims her compensation package would ensure most people were hardly affected.
A NSW Treasury review into the carbon tax ordered by Premier Barry O’Farrell found electricity prices would go up by 15 per cent – not the 10 per cent predicted by the Prime Minister. That would mean an increase in a high-usage household of $498 a year, $300 for a medium-usage household and $183 for a low-usage household.
The Terrorgraph even manages to throw some mud at the French as well! Perhaps ‘proving’ that Gillard favours the French and the Victorians over the poor old New South Welsh-men and women? Or do we simply have cleaner, blacker coal and must therefore pay the price for our foolishness?
Julia Gillard’s power pledge an empty promise | thetelegraph.com.au
The report found that while the French government would receive $800 million in compensation as the owner of a power station in Victoria, no NSW power generator would be compensated.
Need I say more?
Rumblings? Concerns? Should we be surprised? Nah. The O’Farrell opposition promised us that in government they would sort the infrastructure mess out whilst simultaneously getting rid of the backroom deals betwen mates and fixing the shonky state of finances. And we all know that’s code for replacing one set of mates and deals with another somehow more transparent set, going forward. It’s always going forward, never backward in this game. And no matter how transparent the process it’s always going to be as much about who you know as what you know. That’s called business connections and networking. Going forward, of course.
Sidenote: the higher-quality yet leaner SMH crew managed to turn a simple plural into possessive case as well, as in “the submission’s” below. Can’t help myself, can I?
O’Farrell on the spot after rail privatisation rumblings
”Paint the picture, get the five-year plans, lock them into forward estimates, view the submission’s coming forward and make sure they are delivered efficiently,” Mr Broad said of Infrastructure NSW’s responsibilities.
”We would be a prime mover in bringing the private sector into those investments,” he said. ”We want us to be a point of call for them [private sector].”
Mr Broad said another aspect of his job would be to provide reports that could act as guides for governments to follow. ”Our reports will be published,” he told the Herald this week.
”If you think of the Industry Commission type reports, which become reference documents … I think that’s a very powerful arm.”
OK, point is that it’s a new version of Final Cut Pro. That’s cool, in a way, but I don’t use it. And I’m not altogether sure what Matthew Lentini is on about with his choice of words here. Surely one can choose to flaunt something “good” that you yourself have (should you be so ungracious as to do so, of course) but how can you (or a company such as Apple) be “flaunted” for some apparent quality? Know what I mean, Matthew? Steve Jobs or Apple may choose to flaunt their software’s simplicity in some ostentatious display of Apple-ness but you can’t say that Apple (or Jobs) is ‘ flaunted for it‘. At least not in my book!
‘Vaunted’ wouldn’t work very well either, so perhaps it was “praised” or “lauded” that you were looking for?
New Apple Final Cut Pro X Goes Automatic – Channel News
While Apple is flaunted for its software’s simplicity
flaunted – definition of flaunted by the Free Online Dictionary, Thesaurus and Encyclopedia.
v. flaunt·ed, flaunt·ing, flaunts
v.tr.
1. To exhibit ostentatiously or shamelessly: flaunts his knowledge. See Synonyms at show.
2. Usage Problem To show contempt for; scorn.
v.intr.
1. To parade oneself ostentatiously; show oneself off.
2. To wave grandly: pennants flaunting in the wind.
No one wants to be ripped off, but surely it’s a seller’s right to charge what they want? If the price is too high, just look elsewhere. Of course if there are no alternatives – and especially so if the product is something essential in our lives – then the situation becomes more substantial. And that’s why we have set up regulatory bodies to oversee competition and pricing on many things.
We still fret over big oil ‘gouging’ us mere cents on petrol prices (despite having the power to swap to smaller cars or public transport) yet cheerfully ask – and often get – ludicrously high prices when we sell our real estate. All of those home sellers out there gouging the buyers not only get let off without public scrutiny but the highest sales actually get celebrated! Whoopee, another record price! Now housing is even less affordable! Yes!
I can’t talk, I doubled my money in real estate in the late ’80s (and spent it all in the ’90′s). But I don’t whinge about the price of minor consumer items, either.
Why, for example, is setting a recommended price of $129 on a range extender such a big deal that it gets touted as ‘price gouging’? Did someone’s eye get taken out? This is, after all, a recommended price only. I’m sure you could buy one for way less than RRP. It’s just an example – a small one, admittedly – by which we trivialise and demean our language and our lives. It’s exaggeration, and it’s par for the course.
Netgear Price Gouging With 54% Mark Up On New Wi Fi Gear – Channel News
US networking company Netgear is asking Australian customers to pay 54% more for a new consumer home network repeater called the Universal Wi-Fi Range Extender, than what they sell the same device for in the USA.
Made in China, the new device which is designed to boost a Wi Fi signal around the home is being sold in the USA, with a recommended retail price of US $90 (A$84). The same device is being sold by Netgear in Australia for $129.
I know, I know, English is a changing language and everday use has morphed over the last few decades. Even so I expect better from the so-called “quality” media. Personally I (just about) gave up fighting against this spurious, lazy use of ‘acronym’ for any abbreviation some time ago. It’s a battle (seemingly) lost. But – hesitatingly – once more into the breach dear friends…
SMH please note: QANTAS is both an abbreviation and – because it’s actually said as a fully-fledged word – an acronym as well. Whereas OMG is just an abbreviation or initialism (unless you somehow say “ommmguh” or similar). Is it too late to fight this?
The Offender – the Sydney Morning Herald:
OMG, acronym fever sends a text to the OED
OMG, acronym fever sends a text to the OED
What Acronym actually means:
Acronym | Define Acronym at Dictionary.com
a pronounceable name made up of a series of initial letters or parts of words; for example, UNESCO for the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization
What is acronym? – A Word Definition From the Webopedia Computer Dictionary
In everyday speech, the term is also used to refer to initialisms, which are combinations of letters representing a longer phrase. For example, CRT is an initialism for cathode ray tube. The difference is that an acronym is pronounced as if it were a word rather than just a series of individual letters.
Picky, picky, picky. Sometimes I can’t help myself.
Today, from Cyclingnews.com, and yes it could be a translation problem, but for the record:
Quick Step has announced it will extend Tom Boonen’s suspension but not fire the rider who has tested positive for cocaine for the third time. The reigning Paris-Roubaix champion will undergo a psychiatric treatment plan and be subject to strict testing by Quick Step over the next 12 months.
Psychiatric treatment? Have they gone mad? I think they need a behaviour management plan written by a psychologist. There is a difference, guys.
Yesterday, from the Australian, reportedly the “online newspaper of the year”:
Qantas to retain Brisbane hangar for maintainting Airbus 330 fleet
I was going to let “maintainting” through to the keeper but then…
Qantas’ large hangar at Brisbane Airport is currently used to service its Boeing 767 fleet, but over the next five years this work will progressivly be taken overseas.
I thought “progressivly” less inclined to let them off the hook. Busy day, too busy to run the old eye over the copy? Ahhh, it’s only online, it doesn’t matter! No wonder they are the “online newspaper” of choice!
And from Carsguide, this gem:
It’s been 20 years since the birth of the Mazda MX-5 but time has hurried and the car remains almost unmistakable from its ancestor.
‘Almost unmistakable’ from its ancestor? So the writer is saying that it’s not mistakable, almost. So in fact it is ‘mistakable’? Now I could be mistaken but I think they meant to say ‘almost indistinguishable’. Perhaps it was translated into English from a Japanese press release, although attribution is to a Neil Dowling of the Mercury. I thought that would do me until I read the very next para:
It is becoming the Galapagos turtle of the motoring world — fascinating in its ability to look its age when born and exactly the same a century later.
Oh dear, this is just priceless… a car – purportedly a sports car – that is not only akin to a giant turtle that takes 40 years to grow to maturity but “fascinating in its ability to look its age when born”! As Wikipedia attests, it hatched from an egg and looks like a baby turtle… the mind boggles with thoughts of what animals, vegetables or manufactured goods do not look their age when born… and boggles again when said creature (or car) doesn’t change appearance in 100 years. I think Neil meant to say that it it hasn’t changed much in overall shape, just gotten somewhat bigger. There, that’s not hard, is it?
Picky, picky, picky. Sometimes I can’t help myself.
Today, from Cyclingnews.com, and yes it could be a translation problem, but for the record:
Quick Step has announced it will extend Tom Boonen’s suspension but not fire the rider who has tested positive for cocaine for the third time. The reigning Paris-Roubaix champion will undergo a psychiatric treatment plan and be subject to strict testing by Quick Step over the next 12 months.
Psychiatric treatment? Have they gone mad? I think they need a behaviour management plan written by a psychologist. There is a difference, guys.
Yesterday, from the Australian, reportedly the “online newspaper of the year”:
Qantas to retain Brisbane hangar for maintainting Airbus 330 fleet
I was going to let “maintainting” through to the keeper but then…
Qantas’ large hangar at Brisbane Airport is currently used to service its Boeing 767 fleet, but over the next five years this work will progressivly be taken overseas.
I thought “progressivly” less inclined to let them off the hook. Busy day, too busy to run the old eye over the copy? Ahhh, it’s only online, it doesn’t matter! No wonder they are the “online newspaper” of choice!
And from Carsguide, this gem:
It’s been 20 years since the birth of the Mazda MX-5 but time has hurried and the car remains almost unmistakable from its ancestor.
‘Almost unmistakable’ from its ancestor? So the writer is saying that it’s not mistakable, almost. So in fact it is ‘mistakable’? Now I could be mistaken but I think they meant to say ‘almost indistinguishable’. Perhaps it was translated into English from a Japanese press release, although attribution is to a Neil Dowling of the Mercury. I thought that would do me until I read the very next para:
It is becoming the Galapagos turtle of the motoring world — fascinating in its ability to look its age when born and exactly the same a century later.
Oh dear, this is just priceless… a car – purportedly a sports car – that is not only akin to a giant turtle that takes 40 years to grow to maturity but “fascinating in its ability to look its age when born”! As Wikipedia attests, it hatched from an egg and looks like a baby turtle… the mind boggles with thoughts of what animals, vegetables or manufactured goods do not look their age when born… and boggles again when said creature (or car) doesn’t change appearance in 100 years. I think Neil meant to say that it it hasn’t changed much in overall shape, just gotten somewhat bigger. There, that’s not hard, is it?
Obviously this is a new way to define the word rational – in the context of ‘improved fuel consumption’ for a $Aus155K car this motoring journo states that “in the case of the CaymanS… its emotional appeal remains overwhelming, its improved economy rationally pleasing.“
Exactly how a rational person can be pleased about a slightly improved rate of gas guzzling when they have shelled out a small hill of cash is beyond me. OK, it’s laudable that they have done something positive about the fuel consumption, but (as the writer noted) this is a self-indulgent, emotional purchase, not a rational one.
Obviously this is a new way to define the word rational – in the context of ‘improved fuel consumption’ for a $Aus155K car this motoring journo states that “in the case of the CaymanS… its emotional appeal remains overwhelming, its improved economy rationally pleasing.“
Exactly how a rational person can be pleased about a slightly improved rate of gas guzzling when they have shelled out a small hill of cash is beyond me. OK, it’s laudable that they have done something positive about the fuel consumption, but (as the writer noted) this is a self-indulgent, emotional purchase, not a rational one.
Apparently there’s a bonus on offer in Germany to junk your old car and update to a new one – and it’s favouring small cars over larger ones. (We can only hope this is a continuing downsizing trend, not a flash in the pan. German cars may be well engineered but tend to the porky rather than trim side).
Interesting use of the language here: A sharp fall in demand from overseas is compounding premium carmakers’ problem as makers of undersized vehicles rejoice.. Apparently small cars are ‘undersized’, rather than right-sized or appropriate. Does that mean that large cars are by definition over-sized?
Apparently there’s a bonus on offer in Germany to junk your old car and update to a new one – and it’s favouring small cars over larger ones. (We can only hope this is a continuing downsizing trend, not a flash in the pan. German cars may be well engineered but tend to the porky rather than trim side).
Interesting use of the language here: A sharp fall in demand from overseas is compounding premium carmakers’ problem as makers of undersized vehicles rejoice.. Apparently small cars are ‘undersized’, rather than right-sized or appropriate. Does that mean that large cars are by definition over-sized?
Let me unravel the meaning behind the Sydney Daily Telegraph‘s statement today that “Network Ten’s launch of the digital-only free-to-air sports channel One is a tectonic shift in Australian television”. This is taking a geological term (the agonisingly slow, grinding movement of huge plates that comprise the Earth’s crust) and applying it (very accurately) to the agonisingly slow, grinding progress that represents “change” in the Australian TV broadcasting industry.
It’s a bit like a “quantum leap”, which is of course a very, very small – almost undetectable – change in state (and one that will not exist if observed). But good on Channel 10 – or perhaps One – for making a move that the public broadcasters made a few years ago. Not that the public broadcasters matter – for as the Tele explained, “After years of an industry comprising just the Seven, Nine and Ten channels, since last Thursday night we now have a fourth – One.” Hmmm. What’s missing there? ABC 1 and 2, and SBS 1 and 2 perhaps? At least they are in good company – apparently “pay TV” is also not part of the “industry”.
Admittedly the Tele favourably mentioned the ABC a bit later when it said that “While the digitally savvy ABC has broadcast its unique digital channel ABC2 since 2005, it’s taken the full eight years since free-to-air digital TV started in Australia for a commercial TV network to follow suit”. Which is a good point, taking us back to “tectonic” for a moment; but leaving the ABC out of the industry remains a bit rich. Just because they don’t show traditional, paid-for advertising. Let alone ignoring SBS completely (which, ahem, does accept money for adverts).
As always, go figure. It is the Tele, after all.
Let me unravel the meaning behind the Sydney Daily Telegraph‘s statement today that “Network Ten’s launch of the digital-only free-to-air sports channel One is a tectonic shift in Australian television”. This is taking a geological term (the agonisingly slow, grinding movement of huge plates that comprise the Earth’s crust) and applying it (very accurately) to the agonisingly slow, grinding progress that represents “change” in the Australian TV broadcasting industry.
It’s a bit like a “quantum leap”, which is of course a very, very small – almost undetectable – change in state (and one that will not exist if observed). But good on Channel 10 – or perhaps One – for making a move that the public broadcasters made a few years ago. Not that the public broadcasters matter – for as the Tele explained, “After years of an industry comprising just the Seven, Nine and Ten channels, since last Thursday night we now have a fourth – One.” Hmmm. What’s missing there? ABC 1 and 2, and SBS 1 and 2 perhaps? At least they are in good company – apparently “pay TV” is also not part of the “industry”.
Admittedly the Tele favourably mentioned the ABC a bit later when it said that “While the digitally savvy ABC has broadcast its unique digital channel ABC2 since 2005, it’s taken the full eight years since free-to-air digital TV started in Australia for a commercial TV network to follow suit”. Which is a good point, taking us back to “tectonic” for a moment; but leaving the ABC out of the industry remains a bit rich. Just because they don’t show traditional, paid-for advertising. Let alone ignoring SBS completely (which, ahem, does accept money for adverts).
As always, go figure. It is the Tele, after all.
I keep reading the word “wallah” in a context that suggests that the English word (procured from the French) “voila” was actually meant. As in “Look there!” Is this a simple mistake, where people have heard a word and taken a best guess at the spelling? Or is it a deliberate attempt to rid the English language of a French invader? Perhaps they are being funny, but it comes across as simply sad. Maybe it’s me.
Here’s an example: All I had to do was connect an Ethernet cable to my office network, turn it on, and wallah we were into the land of smart storage management.
Filed under Language, words by Rob.
I keep reading the word “wallah” in a context that suggests that the English word (procured from the French) “voila” was actually meant. As in “Look there!” Is this a simple mistake, where people have heard a word and taken a best guess at the spelling? Or is it a deliberate attempt to rid the English language of a French invader? Perhaps they are being funny, but it comes across as simply sad. Maybe it’s me.
Here’s an example: All I had to do was connect an Ethernet cable to my office network, turn it on, and wallah we were into the land of smart storage management.
Filed under Language, words by Rob.
This is about language, especially the language used by the traditional media, but we’ll open up with some simple economics: the Australian dollar is traded on an open marketplace and moves up and down in response to demand. (Long ago it was fixed by successive governments, mostly notably the conservative ones, but a Labor federal government reformed our currency system and floated the dollar.)
By floating or trading the currency the value of the dollar adjusts itself to the realities of, for example, importers wishing to exchange Aussie dollars for other currencies. These importers need to do this in order to buy goods and bring them into the country. Now as the dollar falls in value against any particular currency that means more Aussie dollars are needed to buy that foreign currency. This raises the local cost for the importer which will be reflected either in lessened profit for the importer or (more likely) an increased price to the consumer. The upshot of that is a fall in demand for price-sensitive imported products and more cash available to buy locally-produced products, or to invest locally. Is this good or bad? Or neutral?
To read the local Aussie press you’d think it bad, by default: Australian dollar plummets on weak US data. Note that it didn’t fall – by about a cent, mind – rather it plummeted. Doesn’t sound good, does it? I can imagine many readers assuming the worst.
However the flipside to a falling dollar is that exporters will be selling Aussie goods at local Aussie prices to importers in other countries, and they will receive payment in a foreign currency. As the Aussie dollar falls in value against those currencies (and it may not, as each is traded individually), they get more Aussie dollars in return for a stronger overseas currency. For example an exporter may have signed a contract in $US and will expect to get a certain number of Aussie dollars when those gratefully received US dollars arrive. However a falling Aussie dollar means they will get more Aussie dollars than they originally expected. It’s a bonus, it adds value and profit to the exporter’s bottom line and encourages further investment. So now, is that good, bad or neutral?
Media-speak is a wonderful thing, but it does distort the news by adding colour and flavour where none is needed. Rather than report an event, they re-write it to suit what they want to portray. Whilst some traditional media play a straight bat most of the time, all succumb to temptation over time and manipulate stories to their advantage. We know this, and put up with it. After all, we know the game-plan of each media outlet is to sell their product – or do we?
This is about language, especially the language used by the traditional media, but we’ll open up with some simple economics: the Australian dollar is traded on an open marketplace and moves up and down in response to demand. (Long ago it was fixed by successive governments, mostly notably the conservative ones, but a Labor federal government reformed our currency system and floated the dollar.)
By floating or trading the currency the value of the dollar adjusts itself to the realities of, for example, importers wishing to exchange Aussie dollars for other currencies. These importers need to do this in order to buy goods and bring them into the country. Now as the dollar falls in value against any particular currency that means more Aussie dollars are needed to buy that foreign currency. This raises the local cost for the importer which will be reflected either in lessened profit for the importer or (more likely) an increased price to the consumer. The upshot of that is a fall in demand for price-sensitive imported products and more cash available to buy locally-produced products, or to invest locally. Is this good or bad? Or neutral?
To read the local Aussie press you’d think it bad, by default: Australian dollar plummets on weak US data. Note that it didn’t fall – by about a cent, mind – rather it plummeted. Doesn’t sound good, does it? I can imagine many readers assuming the worst.
However the flipside to a falling dollar is that exporters will be selling Aussie goods at local Aussie prices to importers in other countries, and they will receive payment in a foreign currency. As the Aussie dollar falls in value against those currencies (and it may not, as each is traded individually), they get more Aussie dollars in return for a stronger overseas currency. For example an exporter may have signed a contract in $US and will expect to get a certain number of Aussie dollars when those gratefully received US dollars arrive. However a falling Aussie dollar means they will get more Aussie dollars than they originally expected. It’s a bonus, it adds value and profit to the exporter’s bottom line and encourages further investment. So now, is that good, bad or neutral?
Media-speak is a wonderful thing, but it does distort the news by adding colour and flavour where none is needed. Rather than report an event, they re-write it to suit what they want to portray. Whilst some traditional media play a straight bat most of the time, all succumb to temptation over time and manipulate stories to their advantage. We know this, and put up with it. After all, we know the game-plan of each media outlet is to sell their product – or do we?
OK, here’s a preamble. Words themselves are symbols, and are made up of smaller discrete symbols. These symbols have meaning and are interpreted by our brains as we “read” them. You are doing this now. (Whoopee, the reader says.) If the words fall within our “memory” we “understand” the meaning to a reasonable approximation of the writer’s intent, and we can refine this understanding further by looking at the context of the word within a sentence, a paragraph or even more. All of this almost-instant understanding can be verified by checking individual words in a dictionary, although English provides so many alternatives that even simple words can blur somewhat and will require some guesswork. Now imagine if the writer further confused us all by using a thesaurus, a device by which the writer can appear more studiously wordy and worthy than the reader. Great. We have obfuscated ourselves into a hole (but not a whole).
Now amplify the simple thesaurus with visuwords, a cool tool that can search, show and zoom on words and their connections with related words. Go on, try it. Waste some more time on the net and find some fascinating word associations in the process. Great. Don’t forget to check out Princeton’s WordNet link on the same site.
You need more than just a word processor with a spell check function in this world. This tickled my fancy…from a trashy Aussie car mag on line… From the moment Subaru announced the new Impreza WRX STI last year we’ve been on the edge of our seats and waiting with baited breath.
The image of that devoted journo waiting with “baited” breath for a car to finally spring forth is a poignant one. Wonder what bait he was using? And what an ugly, pointless car it turned out to be!
|
|
