Headlinese

My boss is definitely one of those old-school types, and tends to be a little change-resistant. OK, a lot change-resistant. Anywho, I asked him a few days about some of the most celebrated examples of the sports dialect of headlinese:

"Harriers" "Thinclads" "Spikers" "Gridders" "Cagers"

I know what they are, but when I asked him, "Do you think our readers really know what a harrier is?" he said, "We teach them what it is."

In particular, spikers irritates me because there are certain people on a volleyball court that are legally prohibited from doing said activity. However, even if he'd let me do it, it's not like I can come up with anything better.

So, in summation, do you struggle with these issues or run anything better?

 

Man, that guy is living in the 1940s.

Thinclads? What are they?

 

"The locals outgunned their opposing gumshoes in Friday's battle."

 

Track and Field.

 

Guy probably thinks Japs is OK in a headline, too.

 

PREP CAGER INKS JUCO PACT
Asset to Quintet, Hardwood Mentor Asserts; College Prexy in Agreement

 

I've never heard of thinclads either.


I don't know if it's lazy writing, but it's not great writing, that's for sure. Same thing with using plated two runs with a single.

 

"We teach them what it is?" Jeez, pal. Nice view to take. Didn't you learn in Journalism 101 — Know your audience!?!?! Guess what, the audience of prep sports are the players and parents themselves... not 60-year-old grizzled journalist who used these horrible, hokey and down right stupid terms back in the day.

You have to respectfully disagree... I mean, show me a quality newspaper in America that uses these terms?

 

Don't forget GRAPPLERS

 

As a cross country runner in high school in the 1980s, we had a support team called "Harrier Helpers."

I thought maybe they should have been dressed as anthropomorphic hands.

 

What about kegglers? That's one of my favorite.

 

It depends on roles in the sports department, namely how much experience and pull you have vs. the party that's using the old terms.

My first SE loved using a lot of those old terms ... of course, he's past age 70. When he did those, I had no experience while he had over 35 years experience, including more than a decade at that shop as SE.

Sure, I wanted to change some of those terms. But fat chance anyone was going to listen to me, no matter how much sense I might have made. Maybe my input would be more valued now, then again I may just be kidding myself.

That SE is semi-retired now. I hope he's well ... truly one of the good people I know.