Author Archive
Articles by Merrill Perlman | Email the Author
No Use
The “d” is (usually) not optional
By Merrill Perlman Oct 10, 2011 at 03:02 PM
The Northeast has been experiencing a bit of a resurgent summer*, so cool refreshments have been called for. You have... More
Only You Know
Once in a while, placement matters
By Merrill Perlman Oct 3, 2011 at 01:30 PM
OK, we’ll admit it: Most of the time you can put “only” anywhere in a sentence and no one will... More
Unequal Rights
All synonyms are not the same
By Merrill Perlman Sep 26, 2011 at 12:03 PM
Strunk and White’s Elements of Style counsels to avoid euphemism, and, as we wrote on the book’s fiftieth anniversary,... More
None of the Above
Plural or singular? Yes.
By Merrill Perlman Sep 19, 2011 at 02:12 PM
How many of you were taught that “none” stands for “no one,” and must always take a singular verb? Bet... More
Bodily Functions
The scent of a language
By Merrill Perlman Sep 12, 2011 at 01:00 PM
The scene may have been a long coach ride or a London park bench on a hot day, but the... More
Talking Back
‘Revert’ gains a new meaning
By Merrill Perlman Sep 6, 2011 at 03:56 PM
The recruiter was pleased that the law firm was interested in one of his clients. “I will revert with candidate... More
Against Semantic Satiation
Some new words to learn after a wild week
By Merrill Perlman Aug 29, 2011 at 02:06 PM
After a week in which the East suffered through earthquakes and a hurricane, we could all use a little entertainment.... More
Going Strait
Narrowing down the difference between “strait” and “straight”
By Merrill Perlman Aug 28, 2011 at 01:54 PM
When two words sound the same and have similar meanings, you know they’re going to merge eventually. But until they... More
Oral History
Of spoken and written words
By Merrill Perlman Aug 22, 2011 at 01:15 PM
It’s a crazy market, the investors were told by the columnist, and they had to protect themselves. So they shouldn’t... More
One Word or Two?
An altogether random list to use every day
By Merrill Perlman Aug 15, 2011 at 04:59 PM
English insists on having variations of words, like “every day/everyday” or “any time/any time,” where two words are scrunched together... More
Really?
Literally speaking
By Merrill Perlman Aug 8, 2011 at 01:35 PM
Here’s a cover letter cited in a column about what not to write when applying for a job: “I am... More
The Personals
When to use ‘who’ and ‘that’
By Merrill Perlman Aug 1, 2011 at 12:11 PM
“We’re the people that are going to say, ‘No,’ to Washington, D.C., taxing and spending,” U.S. Rep. Pete Sessions (R-TX),... More
Lone Modifications
Adjectives may agitate
By Merrill Perlman Jul 25, 2011 at 02:09 PM
Adjectives play many roles. They can tell us which box on the gift table is being discussed—the “blue” box—so we... More
Irony Patch
It’s not a coincidence
By Merrill Perlman Jul 18, 2011 at 01:47 PM
It’s “ironic” that many journalists don’t understand when to correctly use “irony.” Here’s an example of how “irony” frequently appears... More
Quotus Interruptus
‘What … did (he) say?’
By Merrill Perlman Jul 12, 2011 at 12:51 PM
For weeks before Derek Jeter of the New York Yankees reached 3,000 career hits, he had been saying he didn’t... More
Almost Famous
Confusion over “infamy” and “notoriety” abounds
By Merrill Perlman Jul 5, 2011 at 05:05 PM
You probably don’t want to become “infamous.” but you may want to be “notorious.” The adjective “infamous” has traditionally meant... More
Gonna Wanna
When dialects collide
By Merrill Perlman Jul 5, 2011 at 03:40 PM
Writing the way people speak is one way to make sure your copy doesn’t become bloviated or stodgy. But journalists... More
Fraught Fest
Can something be ‘fraught’ without ‘with’?
By Merrill Perlman Jun 27, 2011 at 01:12 PM
Kirk Arnott, a retired assistant managing editor of the Columbus Dispatch who keeps his hand sharp with part-time copyediting there,... More
Title Search
Descriptions that deserve respect, or not
By Merrill Perlman Jun 20, 2011 at 02:10 PM
We love to modify things, to make them as descriptive or as recognizable as possible. It’s not just a house,... More
Call Me ‘Al’
Another confusing suffix
By Merrill Perlman Jun 13, 2011 at 02:28 PM
Is an appliance “electric” or “electrical”? Is Sarah Palin visiting “historic” sites or “historical” sites? Is being “politic” the same... More
Woman’s work - The twisted reality of an Italian freelancer in Syria
Sourcing Trayvon Martin ‘photos’ from stormfront - Not a good idea, Business Insider
Elizabeth Warren, the antidote to CNBC - The senator schools the talking heads on bank regulation
Art Laffer + PR blitz = press failure - The media types up the retail lobby’s propaganda
Reuters’s global warming about-face - A survey shows the newswire ran 50 percent fewer stories on climate change after hiring a “skeptic”
Barack Obama: ‘those old times aren’t coming back’
“It used to be there were local newspapers everywhere. If you wanted to be a journalist, you could really make a good living working for your hometown paper”
The Guardian’s editor opens up on Reddit
Alan Rusbridger, editor of The Guardian, answered questions in an Ask Me Anything
The (almost) lost speech of Justice Anthony Kennedy
How his insightful remarks about the Constitution inadvertently make the case for a Supreme Court “media pool”
Fox News sues TVEyes for copyright infringement
Says subscription service sells access to its content without permission nor compensation
CJR's Guide to Online News Startups
ACEsTooHigh.com – Reporting on the science, education, and policy surrounding childhood trauma
Who Owns What
The Business of Digital Journalism
A report from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism
Questions and exercises for journalism students.
