I am constantly floored by the overwhelming majority (yes, majority) of well-educated individuals in the field of public relations that can't spell, don't know the correct use of punctuation, don't know the difference between words, don't/won't use proper grammar and, most importantly, DON'T CARE!
It's downright scary. Who is teaching these people, and why are they allowed to graduate without first being able to prove that they have a firm grasp of the English language? Do me a favor: if they can't write or spell, please don't forward me their resume. To those out there who have happened to slip through the cracks: don't plan on staying long at JMG. For those in our profession that allow it to happen: shame on you.
Granted, everyone makes mistakes—that's what an editor is for—but it is rampant, and frankly, embarrassing, when only a few people are working to correct the problem. Here at JMG, it is unacceptable. We are fortunate to have a PR staff made up of grammarians who take their work very seriously. Guess what? We still make mistakes. But we learn from them, and I can honestly say, very rarely make them again.
My biggest gripe is with those that are wrong and don't care. I have actually worked with a PR manager from the corporate side that told me of his/her misspellings, "It's good enough. They know what I mean." When questioned about the credibility of his/her name, that of his/her company and brand and how effective/ineffective the communication would be, the reply I got back was, "Most of them won't even know the difference." I don't have to elaborate on my solution.
Another great example occurred when I received a direct mail piece from a communications "expert" that had a few typos in it. I kindly emailed him/her back to inform him/her of the mistake. The reply I received was, "I don't need your criticism." I received a follow-up direct mail piece from the same person a few months later with the exact same typos.
It used to be that there were a few key words that individuals would struggle with: there/their/they're, affect/effect, its/it's, your/you're. Since microblogging and spell check have been around, it has worsened 10-fold, and not just among the younger generation. Some common misspellings that I am seeing these days (don't laugh—I'm serious):
- Steak/Stake – I once received a brief on a press conference that stated a media tent was going to be held up with "steaks" in the ground. I hope they were t-bones.
- Whet/Wet – I can't tell you the number of times I have seen a brief concerning catering that mention appetizers "wetting" someone's appetite.
- Than/Then – Than is used to compare. Then is used to illustrate time.
- Premier/Premiere – We are going to "premier" a new...
- Complement/Compliment – Someone emailed me that I had received a lot of "complements" at a recent luncheon. I emailed back if they were fashion complements to complement my suit. She didn't get it. She just said "they had good things to say about you." Oh, "compliments."
- Cent/Cents/Sense – Cent is singular. Cents is plural. Sense is what you lack if you say, "Here is your change back. One dollar and fifty-two cent." A certain rap mogul can take partial blame for this one.
- Ain't – Remember the old saying, "Ain't, ain't a word, so ya ain't supposed to use it?" It still applies.
- Irregardless – This just pisses me off.
I could go on and on, and I'm sure you all have your own, too. So what can we do about it? Here are my five practical solutions:
- First, don't allow it! Hold people accountable for inaccuracies.
- Don't rely on spell check as your only source. Review everything visually first, then use spell check, then use a proofreader.
- Teach and explain to them what is correct.
- Use an old-fashioned dictionary. You can still learn from it.
Take an interest in proper grammar.