Summarizing journalism
So Roy Peter Clark at Poynter, who manages to switch off from informative and insightful to frivolous and self-indulgent as if it were a light switch, is holding a contest for the best six-word journalism motto. The ten finalists:
- Doing more with less since 1690. Ken Fuson, Des Moines Register
- We’ll always have Paris … or Britney — Jim McPherson, Whitworth University
- It’s how I change the world. — Nick Escobar, The Elgin (Ill.) CourierNews
- Get it right, write it tight. — Margaret McDonald, McDonald Wordsmith Communications
- They’ll miss us when we’re gone. — Scott Powers, Patrick McGeehan, Matthew Jones, John Davenport
- Feed the lapdog, euthanize the watchdog — Roy Peter Clark
- Who, what, when, where, why, Web — Greg Phillips, The Fayetteville (N.C.) Observer
- Facts, schmacts … how is my hair? — Kathy Sweeney, anchor/investigative reporter, Heartland News
- Dirty commie latte-sipping liberal scum — Ryan Kelly, Christopher Newport University
- Please stop griping, now start typing. — Jeff Unger, University of Illinois
Enjoy “Doing more with less since 1690,” and “Who, what, when, where, why, Web.” Hate: “It’s how I change the world,” “Please stop griping, now start typing.” They’re opposite sentiments, I know, but both just kinda suck.
Triple hate: the fact that Clark included his own in his self-judged Top 10.
