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Another discussion on how to quote athletes

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by SF_Express, Mar 22, 2009.

  1. da man

    da man Well-Known Member

    Agreed. Our desk would change "We gotta ..." to "We've got to ..." And that is exactly what that person was saying. Unless somehow you are suggesting "gotta" is an actual word.

    And as for the pronunciation, when you speed up and slur "going to," it does indeed become "gonna."
     
  2. jps

    jps Active Member

    no it doesn't.
     
  3. cranberry

    cranberry Well-Known Member

    I find it offensive when athletes who are speaking a second language -- one they haven't yet mastered -- are quoted verbatim in a way that makes them look foolish or in a way that's supposed to be "amusing" to the reader. Paraphrase or fix the grammar but don't hang a guy out who's trying to oblige your needs.
     
  4. Some Guy

    Some Guy Active Member

    Well, I would never say "never" about anything when it comes to writing. Rules are made to be broken.

    I definitely agree with you that the standard should be "going to" and "got to." However, I can imagine a scenario, when you're trying to paint someone as "folksy" or what not, when a person's manner of speaking is such a part of their personality that no feature would be complete without it, when I would approve of the "slang" usage.

    In line with your other point: Most people I know do not pronounce the "g" on the end of their verbs. Runnin', passin', blockin' ... but unless you're the governor of Alaska, nobody quotes people that way. "It was just a good shooting night," Coach Dickweed said.

    You'd never see, in print, "It was a good shootin' night."
     
  5. Some Guy

    Some Guy Active Member

    Right. It's "we've got to get that fixed." That's what the person is saying. Gotta isn't a word. Sorry. Nothing you say can convince me of this.
     
  6. jps

    jps Active Member

    sure it's a word. is it "correct" english? no. but they're saying it. it was said = it's a word.
     
  7. mediaguy

    mediaguy Well-Known Member

    What are contractions, if not shortened versions of word phrases used to make written English sound more like spoken English?

    Wait, wait, let me guess -- your paper still only allows those in quotes, because it diminishes the English language to have us writing the way we are talking. "That (does not) make sense," he said.
     
  8. Some Guy

    Some Guy Active Member

    Are you fucking kidding me? It was said so it's a word? What the fuck kind of standard is that?

    Zipple.
    Clont.
    Speddader.

    Holy shit, look at all the words I just invented!!!
     
  9. Some Guy

    Some Guy Active Member

    Uh, no. Sorry, chief. Try again. Contractions are words. "Gonna" is not.

    Seriously? You people are writing "gotta" and "gonna" in every quote? Are you also writing in Crayon? I don't know any reputable American newspaper -- not one -- that *routinely* uses "gotta" and "gonna."

    If they do, there's a stylistic reason for it.

    But, hey, maybe everybody else has got it wrong, and you've got it right. Have fun dropping "g's" and jamming words together and making every source you cover sound like Sarah Palin.
     
  10. jps

    jps Active Member

    you're right - bad phrasing on my part. what I'm saying is that this is how they said it. they say 'gonna,' I know it's 'gonna' and not 'going to' said so quickly I can't tell the difference. just like ain't. they didn't say 'is not' so quickly it all bunched together and simply sounded like one word.
     
  11. fossywriter8

    fossywriter8 Well-Known Member

    If I didn't quote 'em like I heard 'em, I never would've had the quote "Who'd a-thunk it?" by a coach in a game story years ago.

    My paper's editor wanted to change it to "Who would've thought it?" because the guy was the coach for her alma mater and she didn't want the quote to make the school look bad.

    The quote stayed.
     
  12. Some Guy

    Some Guy Active Member

    You bring up a decent counter-argument with "ain't" ... although I think it Webster's might have made it an official word in the past few years.

    However, you're never going to convince me to use "gonna" routinely for "going to." It's kind of amateurish, to be honest.
     
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