THE -ISM SCHISM

There is a common denominator in journalism, terrorism and fanaticism, besides the -ism. It is the importance of well-chosen words.

Terrorists often use our own words against us. Fanatics resort to cliches. Both groups pick the most inflammatory words: well chosen to them, irksome to us. It's all part of the game.

Ideally, we print journalists choose our words carefully — time and sobriety permitting — in order to tell the story as accurately as we can. And we choose others' words to lend credence, drive home a point, add color and, at times, simply because it is required that we get the quote.

We also have the luxury and responsibility of gatekeeping. We decide what to include or exclude from the quotation marks. We sometimes put the wrong words in their mouths altogether. Not in this magazine, of course, but as practitioners in general, journalists sometimes misconstrue the intent of interviewees. Just as often, the interviewee doesn't always say what he or she was thinking they thought they said.

Print journalists are permitted the luxury — again, time permitting — of helping our sources sound more intelligible than they sometimes are. That goes for us as well. We have software tools and editorial processes that help us minimize our mistakes.

Television journalists have no such luxury. Nor do their news subjects. Words that go out over the airwaves are out there for everybody to hear — everybody. And there's no taking them back. If there were no cameras rolling the first time George W. Bush used the term “crusade” to refer to the battle against terrorism, would I have given him the opportunity to choose another word? You betcha. Could I do the same for his “axis of evil” statement? Absolutely not — it was prepared.

When the good times were rolling in our industry, some trade media outlets — including this one — dabbled in live news coverage from the major trade shows. The good times have ground to a halt and so have the cameras. Maybe that's a good thing.

With the editorial safety net removed and the cameras and recorders rolling, you might have heard recently from the leader of a back-office software company that, “This industry is so [screwed] up, nobody knows where we're going or what we're doing.” Or you might have heard an industry analyst say, “Recovery my ass. Half these yahoos won't be here in six months, and they don't deserve to be.”

You might even have heard an underling say, “Sometimes Joe Nacchio just doesn't know when to shut up.”

But you didn't hear it from me.