We may never exhaust wasteful, redundancies and hackneyed expressions that add up to dull and render our grammar fuzzy, unclear and noisy. There are litanies of noise, be it environmental, physiological and semantic that often undermine our ability to write or speak plainly thereby limiting the audience we intend to address from understanding our story and pieces of information placed on the public domain.
The Harold Evans Newsman’s English becomes handy for the sub-editor and indeed, any of the gatekeepers of the media. It contains hundreds of such redundancies and clichés we should shun, and when the writer, journalist and reporter see them in the copy, he or she should kill or change them. Often, it is the responsibility of the editor or sub-editor to thoroughly go through the copy, and read the message and absorb them. For the experienced minds, who are editors and sub-editors, in most cases, of known publications, they go through hell, if I may say so, correcting what the language experts describe as poor writing, especially for the beginners.
The question is, what constitutes poor writing in grammar? It’s simply the use of unfamiliar expressions, jargons and flamboyant English. Simplicity of words and short sentences are the hallmarks of clear, concise and straightforward vocabulary. Remember the acronym “KISS,” keep it short and simple as always canvassed by this column from time to time; if one should be understood, as writer or public speaker. The overall objective of communication is to inform, educate and entertain the listening and viewing publics in the simplest language everyone would understand.
When, as writer, journalist and the reporter we scribble or verbalise our thoughts without excluding any section of the society, we are fulfilled. On the other hand, if we write as if we are penning down an academic thesis, meant for public consumption in the newspaper, for instance, the message would definitely, be lost. So, as an aspiring writer, borrow from the lists of Harold Evan’s Newsman’s English. It is instructive that when you read your favourite newspaper or listen to the radio or watch television news, critically look for these wasteful, redundant and long winding expressions; simplify them and by the end, you should have added substantially to this collection, as my one time mentor, Mr. Titus Ogunwale of blessed memory, would advise us his students.
Well, I list here some of these hackneyed words and clichés one should do away with, and change them, if possible to one syllable word to kill time and create space, more so for the broadcast media. It looks simple, but popular and familiar words such as “accommodation,” the English enthusiasts’ complaint is that the word occupies much space; therefore, it should be shortened to “hold/ seat, harbour.” All one syllable words, except for “harbour” that has two syllable expressions.
Also, this spent long winding vocabulary, “declared redundant” as some would speak, to the language experts, should be dumped for the one syllable word, “sacked,” “retired” etc. “Draw the attention of ” is simply to “show,” “remind,” “point out” etc. Prefer “live” rather than “dwell,” replace “edifice” for “building.” It goes on and on. We would dissect them as we walk along.
