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Source says "just" a lot

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by Kayaugstin Kott, Jul 27, 2016.

  1. Transcribing an interview for a feature. One source says the word "just" too much. It's just too much!!!

    It's used in the fashion of, "He's one of those players who just makes everyone around him better," or ... "I just remember the one time when he missed a game with an injury."

    Fair or foul to remove the word "just?"
     
  2. Riptide

    Riptide Well-Known Member

    Leave it in. Annoying, but not your problem.
     
  3. TheSportsPredictor

    TheSportsPredictor Well-Known Member

  4. SFIND

    SFIND Well-Known Member

    Better than saying "you know" to start and finish every sentence... you know?
     
  5. ChrisLong

    ChrisLong Well-Known Member

    Next time he tries to do it, just say no.
     
  6. Doc Holliday

    Doc Holliday Well-Known Member

    Nothing wrong with cleaning up someone's copy a little. The quote may not be word for word by the book but part of your job is not make people look stupid unless they blatantly just look stupid on their own. People tend to say things like "you know" and "most definitely" along with other silly phrases that are done out of habit or because they're nervous. My advice would be to use your best judgment and remove it when it's overdone. I've dealt with a lot of coaches and players who have used "is" and "was" in the wrong tense. Sometimes it's just best to have a little empathy and clean it up, especially if the guy is helping you do your job. I would not suggest doing this all the time but I do think it's OK to help someone who is helping you.
     
    Liut, MNgremlin and cranberry like this.
  7. MNgremlin

    MNgremlin Active Member

    Agreed.
     
    Old Time Hockey and Doc Holliday like this.
  8. rpmmutant

    rpmmutant Member

    Write around it. Paraphrase. He said he's one of those players who makes everybody better. He said he remembers the one time Joe Jock missed a game with injury. Not everything needs to be in a quote.
     
    OscarMadison likes this.
  9. Tdell8

    Tdell8 New Member

    This.
     
    Doc Holliday likes this.
  10. Those aren't actual quotes, they're just to show the context in which he said, "just."

    "Just" is a word I had a problem with because people (who clearly struggle with reading comprehension) could think he's saying "just" like one would use "only."

    Because there's a real difference between: "He only does so much for us." vs. "He just does so much for us."
     
  11. stix

    stix Well-Known Member

    Double agreed.

    Funny, I once interviewed Bart Starr some time ago, he was in town for an event. Had a nice little chat about a variety of topics. After the interview, he grabbed me and very seriously said, "Make sure you clean it up." I was all confused, like did a unknowingly drop an F bomb during the interview? He said (paraphrasing), "Sometimes when we talk, the words don't come out exactly as we want them, or we stutter or stammer, so don't make it look stupid."

    He wasn't dickish, just very serious. I know his relationship with the local media was kinda strained when he was Packers coach (he thought reporters should promote the team, not criticize it), so maybe he was coming from that angle, I don't know.

    Anyway, yeah, I always "clean up" quotes to a degree. No use putting a bunch of "you knows" in there when it's nothing but a nervous habit. Same with "like." Nobody needs to read that, and you don't change the integrity of a quote one but by "cleaning up" some of those little language goofs.

    Of course, if it's an expletive-laced tirade, no, don't clean that up.
     
    OscarMadison likes this.
  12. ondeadline

    ondeadline Well-Known Member

    The new overused phrase that has replaced "you know" is "sort of."
     
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