Many militaristic words have several meanings and are used in everyday language, so it’s not necessarily wrong to use them, but journalists might want to consider using alternatives for several reasons.

In his two articles ‘The power of words‘ and ‘Clichés, journalese, and jargon‘, John Allen  looked at the importance of using the right word when writing. He set out why some words are better than others for conveying accurate information.

Choosing the wrong words when writing a piece of journalism can influence how the reader, listener or view interprets the story. Choosing the right words can provide accuracy and clarity and enhance understanding. Here are some examples:

1. Avoiding sensationalism and fear-mongering

Militaristic language often exaggerates the reality of a situation, making ordinary events sound more dramatic or combative than they really are. For example, saying a politician was “ambushed by reporters” implies aggression when “asked tough questions” would be more accurate. Using neutral language helps maintain credibility and avoid unnecessary alarm.

• Militaristic: “Retail giant under siege as competitors launch price war.”
• Neutral alternative: “Retail giant faces strong competition in pricing battle.”
• Why? “Under siege” and “price war” create unnecessary drama, making it sound like an actual attack rather than market competition.

2. Promoting constructive dialogue over conflict

Words shape perceptions. Militaristic language could make people think in terms of battles, enemies, and winners versus losers. This fosters an “us versus them” mentality, which can lead to a polarising of discussions. For instance, calling a political disagreement a “war” makes compromise seem impossible, while calling it a “debate” encourages reasoned discussion.

• Militaristic: “The president fired the first shot in the battle over tax cuts.”
• Neutral alternative: “The president introduced a new proposal for tax cuts.”
• Why? Framing a political decision as a “battle” encourages divisiveness, while “introduced a proposal” emphasises discussion and policymaking.

3. Ensuring accuracy and clarity

Military terms often have precise meanings that don’t fully align with the topics they’re used to describe. “Collateral damage” in war refers to unintended civilian deaths, but using it for a business closing a store due to losses minimises the human impact. More accurate wording, such as “unintended consequences,” keeps reporting clear and honest.

• Militaristic: “The CEO’s decision caused collateral damage among employees.”
• Neutral alternative: “The CEO’s decision led to unintended consequences for employees.”
• Why? “Collateral damage” is a war term for unintended deaths, which minimises the impact on real people when used in business reporting.

4. Reducing desensitisation to violence

Overusing military language in everyday contexts could normalise warlike thinking. If everything is a “battle” or “attack,” real violence may start to feel routine or acceptable. By reserving militaristic terms for actual military-related stories, journalists can help maintain a healthy distinction between competition, debate, and real warfare.

• Militaristic: “The mayor dropped a political bombshell today.”
• Neutral alternative: “The mayor made a surprising announcement today.”
• Why? Using “bombshell” unnecessarily equates politics with explosions and destruction, making actual violence seem less serious.

5. Encouraging empathy and nuance

Militaristic words often strip people of their human individuality and community identity, reducing groups to “targets” or “enemies.” This dehumanisation makes it easier to dismiss concerns or justify hostility. Describing a group as “frustrated” rather than “rebelling” allows for a more nuanced and empathetic portrayal of their situation.

• Militaristic: “Activists launched an all-out assault on the new housing policy.”
• Neutral alternative: “Activists strongly opposed the new housing policy.”
• Why? “All-out assault” portrays activists as aggressors rather than engaged citizens, which may bias the reader’s perception.

6. Fostering a less aggressive public mindset

Language influences culture. A constant barrage of war-like terms can make people more combative in their interactions, from politics to workplace discussions. Choosing non-militaristic language encourages cooperation and thoughtful engagement rather than hostility and defensiveness.

• Militaristic: “Companies are arming themselves with new technology in the AI arms race.”
• Neutral alternative: “Companies are investing in new technology to stay competitive in AI development.”
• Why? “Arming” and “arms race” turn innovation into warfare, encouraging a mindset of conflict rather than progress.

List of commonly used militaristic words

We have compiled a list of militaristic words that are regularly used in journalism along with their intended meaning, their militaristic meaning, and alternatives words journalists might want to consider using instead.

• Ambush
  • Intended meaning: A surprise challenge (e.g., “The interviewer ambushed the politician with tough questions”).
  • Military meaning: A surprise military attack.
  • Alternative: Surprise, catch off guard.
• Battle
  • Intended meaning: A struggle or intense effort (e.g., “The battle against climate change”).
  • Military meaning: A fight between opposing forces.
  • Alternative: Struggle, challenge, effort.
• Bombshell
  • Intended meaning: A shocking revelation or event.
  • Military meaning: An explosive device dropped from the air.
  • Alternative: Shocker, revelation, surprise.
• Campaign
  • Intended meaning: A strategic effort to achieve a goal (e.g., “An advertising campaign”).
  • Military meaning: A series of planned military operations.
  • Alternative: Initiative, effort, movement.
• Casualties
  • Intended meaning: Losses in a non-military context (e.g., “Economic casualties”).
  • Military meaning: People killed or injured in war.
  • Alternative: Losses, affected individuals.
• Combat
  • Intended meaning: To struggle against something (e.g., “Combating misinformation”).
  • Military meaning: Engaging in battle.
  • Alternative: Fight, address, tackle.
• Deploy
  • Intended meaning: To strategically use something (e.g., “Deploying resources”).
  • Military meaning: To position troops or equipment for battle.
  • Alternative: Utilise, implement, distribute.
• Explosive
  • Intended meaning: Something intense or dramatic (e.g., “Explosive growth”).
  • Military meaning: A device that detonates violently.
  • Alternative: Intense, dramatic, rapid.
• Firepower
  • Intended meaning: Strength or influence.
  • Military meaning: The destructive capability of weapons.
  • Alternative: Influence, resources, strength.
• Flagship
  • Intended meaning: The most important or prominent item.
  • Military meaning: The lead ship in a fleet.
  • Alternative: Premier, leading, top-tier.
• Frontline
  • Intended meaning: The most active or important position in a situation.
  • Military meaning: The forward-most part of a battlefield.
  • Alternative: Forefront, leading position.
• Guerrilla tactics
  • Intended meaning: Unconventional strategies.
  • Military meaning: Small, irregular combat operations.
  • Alternative: Unconventional methods, innovative strategies.
• Launch
  • Intended meaning: To begin or introduce something.
  • Military meaning: To fire a missile or initiate an attack.
  • Alternative: Start, introduce, roll out.
• Miss the target
  • Intended meaning: To fail in achieving an objective.
  • Military meaning: A missed shot in combat.
  • Alternative: Fall short, fail to meet expectations.
• Onslaught
  • Intended meaning: A strong or overwhelming attack (e.g., “An onslaught of criticism”).
  • Military meaning: A fierce and sustained military attack.
  • Alternative: Wave, flood, barrage.
• Overrun
  • Intended meaning: To overwhelm or take over something.
  • Military meaning: To capture an area by force.
  • Alternative: Flood, overwhelm, inundate.
• Retreat
  • Intended meaning: To withdraw from a situation.
  • Military meaning: A withdrawal from combat.
  • Alternative: Step back, withdraw, regroup.
• Salvo
  • Intended meaning: A forceful verbal attack (e.g., “A salvo of accusations”).
  • Military meaning: A simultaneous discharge of artillery or gunfire.
  • Alternative: Burst, outburst.
• Shell shock
  • Intended meaning: A state of shock or disbelief.
  • Military meaning: A psychological condition caused by prolonged combat stress.
  • Alternative: Shock, trauma, distress.
• Stronghold
  • Intended meaning: A place of dominance or support.
  • Military meaning: A fortified military position.
  • Alternative: Hub, centre, strong base.
• Target
  • Intended meaning: A goal or focus.
  • Military meaning: An object aimed at in warfare.
  • Alternative: Objective, focus.
• Torpedo
  • Intended meaning: To deliberately ruin something (e.g., “Torpedoing a deal”).
  • Military meaning: A self-propelled underwater missile.
  • Alternative: Sabotage, undermine, derail.
• Troops
  • Intended meaning: A group of people working together.
  • Military meaning: Soldiers or military personnel.
  • Alternative: Team, workforce, staff.
• Under siege
  • Intended meaning: Under intense pressure or attack.
  • Military meaning: A location surrounded by enemy forces.
  • Alternative: Facing pressure, under scrutiny.
• War chest
  • Intended meaning: A reserve of resources or funds.
  • Military meaning: A stockpile of funds for warfare.
  • Alternative: Reserve, resources, budget.
• War of words
  • Intended meaning: An intense verbal dispute.
  • Military meaning: A metaphor based on real warfare.
  • Alternative: Heated debate, verbal conflict.
• Wipe out
  • Intended meaning: To completely remove or eliminate something.
  • Military meaning: To destroy completely in combat.
  • Alternative: Eliminate, eradicate, remove.

Conclusion

While militaristic terms can be powerful when discussing actual conflicts, their overuse in everyday journalism distorts reality, encourages division, and numbs audiences to real violence. By opting for precise, non-militaristic alternatives, journalists can provide more accurate, engaging, and responsible reporting.

Language shapes how people think, so making thoughtful word choices helps foster a more accurate and constructive public dialogue.

The post Militaristic words used in journalism first appeared on Media Helping Media.

It’s based on the article ‘Language and style – the basics‘ which we recommend trainers read before adapting this lesson outline for your own purposes.

Learning objective

Students will analyse and apply effective language and style techniques in journalism to enhance clarity and engagement in news writing. They will evaluate sentence structure, word choice, and objectivity to ensure accurate and unbiased reporting.

• Student-facing objective: By the end of this lesson the student will be able to use clear and engaging language in my news writing, making sure my sentences are structured well and my reporting is fair and accurate.
• Standards: Students will learn about the best use of language and style in their news writing.

Learning activities

Warm-up

Begin with a brief discussion on the importance of clear communication in journalism. Ask students to think of a news story they’ve read or heard recently. Prompt them to consider:

• What made the story easy or difficult to understand?
• Were there any words or phrases that were confusing or unclear?

Encourage students to share their thoughts with a partner. After a few minutes, ask a few students to share their observations with the class. This will activate their prior knowledge about language clarity and prepare them for the lesson on effective language and style in journalism.

Direct instruction

• Conceptual understanding: Introduce the concept of language clarity in journalism. Explain the importance of using short, clear sentences to convey information effectively. Use real-world examples, such as comparing two versions of a news story: one with complex language and one with simplified language. Discuss how the simplified version enhances understanding.
• Procedural skills and fluency: Demonstrate how to construct sentences with a maximum of 20 words and no more than three ideas. Provide examples of sentences that exceed these limits and guide students in rewriting them for clarity. Emphasise the use of active voice and the elimination of unnecessary adjectives and adverbs.
• Application: Present a brief news story with complex language and ask students to rewrite it using the principles discussed. Encourage them to focus on sentence length, word choice, and active voice. Facilitate a class discussion on the changes made and how they improve the story’s clarity and engagement.

Guided practice

Think, Pair, Share: Guide students through a collaborative exercise to practice language clarity in journalism.

• Think: Present students with a complex news excerpt. Ask them to individually identify areas where language clarity can be improved, focusing on sentence length, word choice, and active voice.
• Pair: Have students pair up to discuss their observations. Encourage them to share their thoughts on how to simplify the language and enhance clarity.
• Share: Invite pairs to share their revised versions with the class. Facilitate a discussion on the effectiveness of the changes and how they contribute to clearer communication.
• Feedback: Provide constructive feedback on their revisions, highlighting successful strategies and suggesting further improvements.
• Reflection: Ask students to reflect on the exercise and write down one main takeaway about the importance of language clarity in journalism.

Independent practice

• Provide students with a news article containing complex language. Instruct them to independently rewrite the article, focusing on simplifying sentence structure, using active voice, and eliminating unnecessary words.
• Encourage students to apply the principles of language clarity and style discussed in class.
• Circulate to offer guidance and support as needed.

Assignment

Ask students these questions:

1. How does using active voice improve clarity in news writing?
2. Why is it important to limit sentence length in journalism?
3. What’s one question you still have from today’s lesson?

Suggested answers:

• Suggested answer to Question 1: Active voice makes sentences clearer by showing who is doing the action, making it easier for readers to understand.
• Suggested answer to Question 2: Limiting sentence length helps prevent confusion and ensures that information is conveyed clearly and concisely.

Teacher resources

Differentiation guide

• Advanced learners: Encourage them to explore the nuances of language differences, such as UK vs. US English, and how these affect journalistic style. Challenge them to rewrite a news story in both styles, focusing on maintaining clarity and engagement.
• Striving learners: Provide sentence starters and templates to help them construct clear, concise sentences. Use guided examples to illustrate the transformation of complex sentences into simpler ones. Offer additional practice with identifying active vs. passive voice in sentences.
• Background reading: We recommend trainers read the article ‘Language and style – the basics‘ before adapting this lesson outline for your own purposes. It would also be good to share the link to the article with students.

Notable definitions

• Active voice: A sentence structure where the subject performs the action stated by the verb. It is preferred in journalism for clarity and directness.
• Objectivity: The practice of maintaining neutrality and fairness in reporting, avoiding bias or personal opinions.
• Sentence structure: The arrangement of words in a sentence to convey clear and concise meaning, often emphasising the use of short, simple sentences in journalism.

Required materials

• Whiteboard and markers
• Copies of a news article with complex language for each student
• Handouts with examples of active vs. passive voice
• Projector for displaying examples and student work
• Notebooks or paper for student reflections and exercises

Lesson summary

• Warm-up
• Direct instruction
• Guided practice
• Independent practice
• Assignment

The free teaching tools at the Khan Academy were used in the production of this lesson plan.

Related article

Language and style – basics

The post Lesson: Language and Style first appeared on Media Helping Media.

This is another training module from The News Manual, part of a series reproduced on this site about language and style in news writing.

The importance of language

In this modules, we offer guidance on how to write sentences for maximum understanding and why care over language is important.

Your main task as a journalist is to help people understand what is happening around them; in their village, in their country and in the world. Most readers or listeners will not have your knowledge of language, so you must simplify it for them.

You should be able to examine the most complicated issues and events, then translate them into language which your audience can understand. If you fail in this, people will stop buying your newspaper or tuning in to your radio or television station. You will be failing in your job.

For many journalists today, English is the main language used for newspapers or magazines, radio, television or the Internet. This training module is written in English, so it concentrates on the English language. It is worth remembering, however, that even a language as common as English is not exactly the same all over the world.

There are differences between, for example, UK English and American English. There are often also differences in the way English is written or spoken within individual countries. It may sometimes be difficult to decide what is correct in the English used in your country.

Language is developing all the time, and your country may not yet have a well-established set of rules for English. If this is so, you should use the form which is accepted as correct by the most literate educated people in your country. Above all, use words and grammar which are most easily understood by your readers or listeners.

Although you are reading this in English, you may do a lot of writing in other languages. Many of the general points we make about writing style will apply to these other languages. Learn the general points and try to apply them to your own language or languages.

You may get some guidance on such things as sentence length, punctuation or word usage from your organisation’s style books. These are books which lay down rules for language you must follow in your particular paper or broadcasting station.

You should ask your editor or chief of staff for a copy of your organisation’s style book. Unfortunately, many small or new organisations do not have their own style book. In these chapters, we try to give you some general guidelines for language use and writing style. Use this advice to create your own style guide.

Short, sharp, clear sentences

Whether you write for newspapers, broadcasting or the Internet, you should always aim for words and sentences which provide the maximum amount of understanding with the minimum risk of confusion.

This generally means keeping words and sentences short and simple. You can use long words, but you must be sure they are doing their job properly. There is no room in your sentences for fat and lazy words. If words do not add to understanding, get rid of them.

Sentence length

There is no single rule about the length of sentences in news writing, but you should set yourself a target for the maximum number of words you use.

We suggest that you never use more than 20 words in any sentence, except in special circumstances. If you follow this rule, your sentences will be simpler, there will be less room for error and you will make a more efficient use of words.

An alternative way of judging the best length for your sentences is to count the number of ideas or concepts you expect your reader or listener to understand. Compare these two examples of the same story. Notice how version A tries to pack all the ideas into one sentence, whereas version B splits them into three separate sentences:

• Story A: Four aircraft passengers, the pilot and three people travelling in a car were killed when a twin-engined Beechcraft Baron aircraft hit an electric power line and crashed near Nadi airport this week.
• Story B: Eight people died when an aircraft crashed near Nadi airport this week.
  The pilot and four passengers died when their twin-engined Beechcraft Baron hit a power line. The plane then crashed into a car on a road near the airport, killing three more people.

Notice that, although Story B is 12 words longer than Story A, it is split into three sentences. None of the sentences in Story B is longer than 20 words. Get someone to read both stories out loud to you, and you will quickly see that Story B is easier to understand.

The reason is simple. Story A contains six separate ideas for the reader or listener to understand at one time:

1. the people in the plane;
2. the people in the car;
3. the type of plane;
4. the cause of the crash;
5. the location of the crash;
6. the time of the crash.

Story B, by comparison, has fewer ideas in each sentence. The first sentence has just four simple ideas:

1. the total number of dead;
2. a simple description of the type of plane;
3. where it crashed;
4. when it crashed.

The second sentence tells us:

1. how many died in the plane;
2. the exact type of plane;
3. the exact cause of the crash.

The third sentence tells us:

1. how the people in the car died;
2. where the car was;
3. how many died in the car.

You may argue that Story B, as well as being longer, gives a total of 10 ideas to understand. However, many of those ideas are not separate. They relate to details in the preceding sentence. Linking ideas and repeating details often helps understanding. More important, those ten ideas are not thrown at our audience in one breath. The full stop at the end of each sentence (which comes as a pause on radio and television) allows the reader or listener time to digest one set of facts before moving on to new details.

We recommend that you try to limit each sentence to no more than three separate ideas. You can occasionally use four ideas per sentence, as long as those ideas are not complicated. We fitted four ideas into the intro of Story B above because two of the ideas – the time and place – are very simple and easy for the reader to understand.

Lively language

The words you use will help to make your story easy to understand. Long words are not bad in themselves, if they are the only words available to explain a particular meaning accurately. However, the English language is large and varied so there are usually shorter alternatives which do the job just as well as long words.

Many young journalists think that they have to use the whole of their vocabulary when writing even the simplest news story. You may wish to show off your knowledge of the language, but your knowledge is not what matters. The vocabulary of your reader or listener is more important.

Some journalists also believe that they can only add drama or depth to a story by adding words. We get sentences like:

The man ran swiftly across the street to help the defenceless boy who was being brutally beaten.

Take out the adjectives and adverbs in italics. They are unnecessary and only slow the sentence down. The word swiftly is unnecessary because people do not usually run slowly. The boy is obviously defenceless, otherwise he would not be being beaten. And the word brutally is unnecessary, as most beatings are brutal. The sentence is now much livelier and sharper:

The man ran across the street to help the boy who was being beaten.

The most effective way to add drama to a sentence is to choose the verbs carefully. For example, try changing the verb “ran” to “strolled”, “walked”, “flew” or “thundered”. See how they alter the whole picture of what happened. We do not suggest that you change verbs simply to add drama. Every word must accurately describe what happened. But it is better to choose the correct verb than to add unnecessary adjectives and adverbs. The use of a variety of verbs is most common in sports reporting, where we read of players kicking, shooting, powering or rocketing the ball into the net.

Using new words

Many careless writers introduce new words without thinking how they will be understood. Sometimes they change nouns into verbs, in order to make sentences shorter. The danger with this is that the resultant verb is often less precise than the original phrase and is less readily understood by people. Avoid using verbs such as:

• To author (use to write)
• To hospitalise (use to admit to hospital or to be in hospital)
• To parent (use to be a parent or to act like a parent)

You must be very careful about introducing new words which your readers or listeners might not understand. This is especially important if the word is in their second language. Stay with familiar words.

However, if you cannot avoid using a new word, you must follow it immediately with an explanation. For example, many English language newspapers and broadcasters use the Russian word glasnost quite freely when speaking of the changes in the Soviet Union. When they first began to use it, they needed to explain that glasnost means “the opening up of a society which has previously been rigidly controlled”.

There are also times when new words or usages have been readily accepted by society before the media decide to use them. It would be foolish, for example, to fight against the use of farewell as a verb in the South Pacific. People often speak of `farewelling a friend’.

Sentence structure

It is not enough to write short sentences using simple words. You also have to construct your sentences in such a way that the ideas are easy to understand.

The sentence “the man hit the table” is in the active voice (where the man is the hitter). The sentence “the table was hit by the man” is in the passive voice. Wherever possible, write in the active voice. That is the way most people speak. People do not say “the bus was missed by me”, they say “I missed the bus”.

See ‘The active and passive voices in news‘.

However, there are times when you cannot avoid using the passive voice. This is particularly so when it is not clear who is responsible for the action or when the subject of the sentence is unimportant or unclear. For example we would write:

Three children have been admitted to hospital with suspected food poisoning. (Passive voice)

It would be wrong to use either of the following versions, the first because it is not clear who admitted them (was it a doctor or a nurse?), the second because we are not sure that it was food poisoning:

Someone admitted three children to hospital with suspected food poisoning.

or:

Food poisoning put three children in hospital.

Other factors which can make sentences too complicated for your reader or listener to understand include:

Subordinate clauses

You should avoid starting a sentence with a subordinate clauses. Subordinate clauses usually begin with words such as “while…”, “as…”, “although…”, “even though…”, “because …” and “despite…”. They are separate phrases within a sentence which help to put the main part of the sentence in context. In the following example of bad sentence construction, the subordinate clause is in italics:

BAD: Although there has been a 20 percent increase in murders this year, the Prime Minister has vowed not to bring back hanging.

The main point of the sentence is that the Prime Minister has said he will not bring back hanging. The subordinate clause sets this promise in the context of the rising crime rate. In the example above, putting the subordinate clause at the beginning of the sentence may confuse your readers or listeners. They expect to hear the main facts first. Rewrite the sentence as follows:

BETTER: The Prime Minister has vowed not to bring back hanging, despite a 20 percent increase in murders this year.

And and but

Even simple joining words like and and but can cause confusion if they are not used wisely. These words are called conjunctions because they join things together. The word and is quite acceptable when used to join together two words or phrases:

The man and the woman had two daughters and a son.

However, it should not be used to join together long lists of ideas which can quite easily be split into separate sentences. In the two examples which follow, the first version is confused by using and and but. By splitting it into separate sentences we do not alter the meaning, we simply make it easier to understand, for reasons we discussed in the section on sentence length:

• RIGHT: Import duty on meat and vegetables will be reduced by ten percent.
  The special subsidy for rice exporters will be increased by five percent. These changes will come into effect after the next budget.
• WRONG: Duty on imported meat and vegetables will be reduced by ten percent and the special subsidy for rice exporters will be increased by five percent but these changes will not come into effect until after the next budget.

Paired negatives

Paired or double negatives in English are not only bad grammar (“he has not got no pawpaw”), they usually create confusion, especially in the spoken word. Although logically paired negatives simply cancel each other out, many people do not use them in this way. Many other languages have totally different rules about paired negatives, and even some British dialects use the paired negative to add stress to a negative idea.

For example, the sentence “He was happy” is easy to understand. So is the sentence “He was unhappy”. But what do you understand by “He was not unhappy”. Was he happy or unhappy? Do you see the confusion? Make it a rule: avoid paired negatives.

Objectivity

Your language must not only be easily understood, it must be fair. You should not use words which give a biased view of a person, an event or a situation.
Many words develop special, biased meanings because of the way they are commonly used in a community. In some cases, you cannot avoid using such words. Take care that the words you use reflect the meaning in the community and not your own opinions.

In particular, you should be careful about using words which describe disputes or conflicts. In these cases, each side to the dispute may choose to use the words which reflect well on them and badly on their opponents. As a journalist, you should try to steer the middle course.

The most obvious cases of bias are introduced by the use of adjectives and adverbs. A protester’s peaceful resistance may seem like violent obstruction to a policeman on duty. An injured person waiting for an ambulance may think it arrived slowly when the ambulance driver believes he drove fast.

Verbs too can be loaded with bias. The same protester who lobbed a stone at a police van may be seen by the men inside to have hurled it at them. A boss sees his workers go on strike, the workers may say they withdraw their labour. Words like sack, retrench and make redundant describe similar situations in which people lose their jobs, but they mean quite different things to the bosses and workers involved. Some American companies even speak of letting workers go, even though the workers themselves have no choice.

Nouns can also express bias. A building can be a house to a poor person, yet seem like a shack to the rich observer. It may seem to be in a suburb to its owner, and in a slum to the rich man. And who is rich? If you have $100 you will be rich to a beggar, but poor to a millionaire.

It is impossible to list all the words which may contain bias. You must look at each word individually and ask yourself if it is fair and accurate.

Quotes

You are on safer ground when you use words in quotes. That way the reader can judge the bias through the eyes of the person you quote. (In radio or television, it is better to use a recording of people speaking the actual words, called actuality.) In the following example, look at the difference between these two sentences describing the same crime. Notice how the magistrate and the accused see the crime in opposite ways:

• The magistrate said: “These were mean and despicable thefts, carried out against a defenceless family for no good reason.”
• The accused said: “I never robbed anyone. I just took from the rich people and gave it back to the poor.”

Do not pass judgment. Give the words in quotes and let you readers or listeners judge for themselves.

An added advantage of using quotes is that you can use much livelier language – the words the people themselves used.

To summarise

• You must keep your language clear and simple so that your readers or listeners can understand.
• Sentences should be short – no longer than 20 words or three concepts (ideas).
• Sentence structure should be simple; it is best to write in the active voice.
• Explain any new words whenever you use them.

This module is taken from The News Manual’s Chapter 10: Language & style basics.

Questions

1. What is the primary task of a journalist?
2. Why is it important for journalists to simplify language for their audience?
3. How should journalists handle differences in English language usage across different regions?
4. What is the recommended maximum number of words per sentence for news writing
5. Compare Story A and Story B in the text. Why is Story B considered easier to understand?
6. What role do verbs play in adding drama to a sentence, and how should they be used effectively?
7. Why should journalists be cautious when introducing new words to their audience?
8. Explain the difference between active and passive voice, and why the active voice is generally preferred in news writing.
9. How can the use of quotes help maintain objectivity in journalism?
10. What are some potential sources of bias in language, and how can journalists avoid them?

Answers

1. The primary task of a journalist is to help people understand what is happening around them, whether in their village, country, or the world.
2. Simplifying language is important because most readers or listeners may not have the journalist’s knowledge of language, and simplifying helps ensure understanding.
3. Journalists should use the form of English accepted as correct by the most literate educated people in their country, while also considering the ease of understanding for their audience.
4. The text recommends that journalists should not use more than 20 words in any sentence, except in special circumstances.
5. Story B is considered easier to understand because it splits the information into three separate sentences, allowing the reader to digest one set of facts before moving on to new details.
6. Verbs add drama by accurately describing actions. Journalists should choose precise verbs rather than adding unnecessary adjectives and adverbs.
7. Journalists should be cautious because new words might not be understood by the audience, especially if the word is in their second language. If unavoidable, the word should be immediately explained.
8. Active voice is when the subject performs the action (e.g., “the man hit the table”), while passive voice is when the action is performed on the subject (e.g., “the table was hit by the man”). Active voice is preferred because it is clearer and more direct.
9. Quotes help maintain objectivity by allowing the audience to judge the bias through the eyes of the person quoted, rather than the journalist’s interpretation.
10. Bias can arise from adjectives, adverbs, verbs, and nouns that carry subjective meanings. Journalists can avoid bias by choosing words that are fair and accurate, and by using quotes to present different perspectives.

Lesson plan for trainers

If you are a trainer of journalists we have a free lesson plan: ‘Language and style‘ which you are welcome to download and adapt for your own purposes.

The post Language and style – basics first appeared on Media Helping Media.

Words are the essential tools of journalism. They convey meaning and help the audience understand the issues we are covering. So they need to be used properly.

This article is taken from The News Manual’s Chapter 11: Language & Style – Words and is republished with permission. We have another article on the site ‘Using the right words‘ which covers similar ground.

Spelling

Languages are in a constant state of change. English, as the world’s most widely used language, changes faster than most. Spelling is an area in which this change is most noticeable. There are two standards in spelling – Commonwealth English and American English. Which spelling you choose will depend on usage in your country. Most media organisations decide on a particular alternative and stick to it. Here are some examples of alternative spellings:

Jargon

Jargon is specialised language concerned with a particular subject, culture or profession. It is not usually found in the everyday speech of your ordinary reader or listener. Typical of jargon are such things as medical or technical terms, understood by small groups of specialists in their own fields. For example, a coronary thrombosis to a doctor is commonly called a heart attack by the layman. Computer scientists speak of accessing data when ordinary people talk about getting information.

There is an obvious need for such technical terms in context, such as the doctor’s surgery or the computer room. Unfortunately, jargon words tend to spill over into the media. This is partly because journalists want to impress readers or listeners by their knowledge and partly because journalists do not understand what they have been told. Bad journalists find it easier to pass on the problem to their audience by simply repeating the difficult words which they have been given and don’t understand. You should first ask the person concerned to explain what they mean in simpler terms.

This is especially obvious in reporting on government and the public service. Officials often hide behind their own jargon, using it as a wall to keep the public away from their secrets. A Papua New Guinea Minister for Minerals, speaking about foreign shareholders in a big mine, was quoted as saying:

“…they were invited to participate in the development of that mineral resource and they are obligated to honour their agreement to participate.”

Put into simple English, this means:

They agreed to take part in mining and must stick to that agreement.

Notice that we have had to take the sentence out of direct quotes. You cannot drastically alter the words a person says and leave your readers or listeners believing that they were a direct quote. It is much better to use reported speech that people can understand than use quotes which they cannot.

The message is clear. If you do not understand what you are writing, do not write it. If you have a good knowledge of language, you can translate jargon yourself. If you have any doubts, go back to the people who gave you the information and ask them: “What does it mean in plain English?”

Having said that, there are times when you have to use technical or otherwise difficult terms. In such cases, you should provide an explanation for your reader or listener. This need not be complicated. In the following example, we use the term de facto and explain it within the natural structure of the story:

The immigration service says it will no longer recognise de facto relationships in issuing visas.
Officials say that in future, they will only give joint entry permits to couples who are married.
Men and women living together in de facto relationships will have to apply separately.

Always try to explain abstract jargon in concrete terms; that is, translate ideas into what they mean in the day-to-day lives of your readers or listeners. This is important in areas such as economics and government. For example, a ten percent annual rate of inflation means for most people that the dollar in the pocket a year ago now buys only 90 cents-worth of goods. An increase in the basic tax rate means that workers will get less money in their pay packet.

Public servants often take ordinary words and alter their use, making them difficult for people to understand. For example, they talk about sighting a document when they really mean they saw it. To sight something usually means suddenly seeing it from a distance. To complicate matters further, there is also a verb to cite a document, which means to quote from it. To a radio listener, “sight” and “cite” both sound the same. There are numerous examples of misuse which you should avoid whenever possible.

The following is a list of jargon words and phrases. Alongside each there is an example of a good alternative:

Unnecessary words

People frequently put in extra words or phrases which do not add to understanding. As a journalist you should judge which words help your reader or listener and which only make the sentence longer. For example, people write about waiting for a period of two years. The phrase a period of is unnecessary; you should simply say waiting for two years.

Another common fault, particularly in the spoken word, is to add adjectives or adverbs to nouns or verbs which should not have them. In grammar, this is called redundancy. It usually happens where the noun or verb is an absolute; that is, where something either is or is not, with no half measures. It is clearly wrong to describe a woman as very pregnant. A woman is either pregnant or she is not; there is a definite moment when she becomes pregnant. If the very is being used to indicate that she has been pregnant for several months, it is best to give exact details saying, for example, the woman is eight months pregnant.

It is equally wrong to describe a person as utterly dead. There is a moment at which life stops; people are either dead or they are alive, they cannot be slightly dead or rather dead. They may be nearing death, but that is a different and quite acceptable phrase.
The following is a list of unnecessary words and redundant phrases. Get rid of the words in italics:

Clichés

These are phrases which have been used so often in such a variety of situations that they have lost most of their meaning and force. They become boring to regular readers or listeners and should be avoided.

Journalists in older English-speaking countries such as Britain and the United States are usually taught to avoid clichés. There are two problems facing young journalists in developing countries in the use of clichés. One is that clichés often depend on aspects of a culture specific to certain countries. To describe something which happens very slowly, a British person might say at a snail’s pace, whereas an American would say as slow as molasses in January (a reference to the way that sticky liquids like molasses are harder to pour in cold weather). The American cliché might not be understood by many British people, who call molasses treacle. It would be meaningless to people living south of the Equator, for whom January is a hot month – and for people in the tropics who have no experience of cold seasons.

Journalists should be able to recognise clichés which develop in the language of their own country. If, for example, everyone talks about things or people being as fat as a buffalo, this becomes a cliché. The good journalist will find an alternative which is more accurate or more lively.

The second problem with clichés is that phrases which have become boring in one country may seem fresh and powerful in another. Again, it is your responsibility as a journalist to recognise which phrases are fresh and meaningful, which are stale and meaningless.
We will give you a list of phrases which have become clichés in most of the developed English-speaking nations. It is for you to decide which are clichés in your country:

Troublesome words

A large number of words in the English language are misused. Often it is simply a matter of confusion between similar-sounding words. It is important that you use words correctly. For example, there is often confusion in radio and television between the word diseased (which means having a disease) and deceased (which means dead). In fact, the word deceased causes young reporters so many problems you should avoid using it altogether. Police reports often speak of the deceased when referring to a dead man or woman. A reporter who simply parroted a police statement about a fight between two men wrote the sentence:

The deceased went up to the accused and hit him over the head with a stick.

It is clearly nonsense to say that a dead man hit anybody over the head with a stick. Dead people do not do that. The sentence would have been much clearer if the reporter had used both men’s names.

The following is a list of words which frequently cause problems, especially through misuse:

• affect: is a verb meaning to have an influence on. Often confused with effect which is the noun. So we say: The girl’s headache affected her performance, but the noise had no effect on her.
• all right: is two words. Do not spell it alright.
• alternatives: a choice between two things. If there are more than two, use choices.
• among: used when there are more than two things. If there are two things, say between.
• anxious: means to be troubled or worried. It is sometimes wrongly used to mean eager.
• beside: means at the side of. Besides means in addition to.
• canvass: means to ask for something. Do not confuse it with canvas, which is a cloth.
• charge: there is often confusion between to charge with and to charge for. A person is charged with an offence (the man was charged with murder) People are charged for goods or services they receive (he was charged $20 for his ticket).
• chronic: means long-lasting. When talking about illness, it is often confused with acute, which means severe.
• continual: means happening lots of times. Do not confuse with continuous, which means happening all the time without a break.
• council: is a meeting. Counsel is advice. A councillor is an elected representative on a council. A counsellor is someone who gives advice. We also refer to lawyers in court cases as counsel, because they give legal advice.
• decimate: literally it means to kill one in ten. Today it is used to describe heavy casualties. It does not mean to destroy.
• disappeared: traditionally only ever used as an intransitive verb (i.e. without an object), as in “the rabbit disappeared”. Now in some versions of English it is used as a transitive verb (i.e. with an object, usually human) to mean to intentionally make someone disappear, as in “the regime disappeared hundreds of dissidents”, though this form is still unusual in British, Australian or American English.
• disinterested: means not being directly affected by the issue one way or the other. Do not confuse with uninterested, which means lacking any kind of interest.
  hang: a criminal is hanged, clothes are hung.
• immigrant: a person who comes into the country to live permanently. It is confused with …
• emigrant, who is a person who leaves his or her own country to live permanently in another country. An emigrant from one country becomes an immigrant into another.
• invaluable: means of too much value to be priced. It is often wrongly used to mean without value.
• less: confused with fewer. Less refers to quantity (less water, less flour, less fruit). Fewer refers to number (fewer boys, fewer coconuts).
• licence: in Commonwealth English, this is the noun. To license is the verb.
• literally: usually confused with figuratively. Literally means exact to the letter. If it happens literally, it happens exactly the way it is described. People speak of being “literally dead on my feet“. If they were, they would be dead.
• loan: is the noun. The verb is to lend.
• over: means above. When talking about numbers, use more than (there were more than 50 people in the hall).
• practice: is the noun. To practise is the verb.
• principal: means the main one or the first. We speak of the principal instalment or the school principal. It is often confused with principle, which is a moral guideline.
• Scots: these are people from Scotland, who are Scottish. Do not confuse it with the whisky called Scotch.
• stationary: is an adjective meaning standing still. It is confused with stationery, a noun meaning writing materials.
• treble: mean three times. Do not confuse with triple, which means three kinds. A treble chance gives you three chances of winning. A triple jump is an event involving three kinds of jumping action.
• Ukraine: is the name of the country, not the Ukraine, which was a label used by the former Soviet Union to imply it was a region rather than an independent state.
• whisky: Scotch whisky is spelled without an `e’. Irish and American whiskey is spelled with an `e’.

To summarise

• You must keep your language clear and simple so that your readers or listeners can understand.
• Check any spellings you are unsure of; spelling is important.
• Explain any new words whenever you use them.
• Avoid jargon, unnecessary words and clichés.
• If you do not understand a word you cannot expect your reader or listener to.

This module is taken from The News Manual’s Chapter 11: Language & Style – Words.

Related material

Those wanting to learn about the correct use of language should also read ‘Using the right words‘ which is also published on this site and includes more examples.

Lesson plan for trainers

If you are a trainer of journalists we have a free lesson plan: ‘Word power‘ which you are welcome to download and adapt for your own purposes.

The post Using the right words first appeared on Media Helping Media.

Journalists need to observe important grammatical rules when writing news stories and avoid common mistakes that could confuse the audience.

With so many people using a language as complex as English, there are lots of opportunities for making errors. We cannot possibly list them all here. We will, however, remark on some of the most common mistakes made by journalists.

Collective nouns

Some nouns which are collections of individual parts are treated as plural, while others are treated as singular. It is very much a matter of which style your particular newspaper or broadcasting station uses, but there is a general guideline. If individuals within the group act or make decisions as a single body, use the singular verb.

• RIGHT: The Government said it was going to abolish income tax.
• WRONG: The Government said they were going to abolish income tax.

However, if the collective group is more noted for its individual parts, treat it as a plural. This is commonly done for sporting teams.

• RIGHT: The team manager said they were going to win.
• WRONG: The team manager said it was going to win.

A singular noun should be treated as singular even when it contains several things. For example, we say that:

• A bag of coconuts is sitting on the table.
• A flock of sheep is grazing in the field.
• The bus full of nurses is waiting outside.

This is because the subject of the sentence is “a bag”, not “coconuts”; “a flock”, not “sheep”; and “a bus”, not “nurses”.

Neither, none, each and every

The words neither, none, each and every are treated as singular when they are the subject of a verb, even though they refer to more than one thing or person. This is because the words mean not either one, not one, each one and every one.

• RIGHT: Neither the man nor the woman is able to speak.
• WRONG: Neither the man nor the woman are able to speak.

The word none is treated as singular (because it is short for not one), even though it is usually followed by a plural noun. The subject of the sentence is none (i.e. not one) and therefore needs a singular verb. The subject of the sentence which follows is not men, it is none:

• RIGHT: None of the men was willing to testify in court.
• WRONG: None of the men were willing to testify in court.

The words each and every are treated as singular, even though they may be followed by a long list of things they refer to.

• RIGHT: Every car, bus, bicycle and rickshaw in the city has to be licensed.
• WRONG: Every car, bus, bicycle and rickshaw in the city have to be licensed.

Misplaced modifiers

When you use a phrase to modify or describe part of a sentence, make sure that it describes the correct part. The rule is that the modifier attaches to the noun nearest to it. Mistakes can sometimes be very amusing. In this example, the modifier is in italics.

• RIGHT: The plane came to a halt in front of the clan chief who was dressed in a grass skirt.
• WRONG: Dressed in a grass skirt, the plane came to a halt in front of the clan chief.

I, me, we and us

These become a problem when you turn someone’s quotes into reported speech. It is correct to use I, me, my, we, us, and our within quotation marks, but once you take the quote marks away and write in reported speech, you have to make the following changes:

• I becomes he or she,
• me becomes him or her,
• my becomes his or her.
• We becomes they,
• us becomes them,
• our becomes their.
• you becomes him, her or them,
• your becomes his, hers or their.

Many journalists remember to change the I, me and my in reported speech but forget about the rest of the changes that have to be made. In the following example, we show the right and wrong ways of turning a sentence from quotes into reported speech. The original sentence in quotes was:

The Prime Minister of Fiji told soldiers in Suva: “I will do my best to protect our country.”

Turned into reported speech, it becomes:

• RIGHT: The Prime Minister of Fiji told soldiers in Suva that he would do his best to protect their country.
• WRONG: The Prime Minister of Fiji told soldiers in Suva that he would do his best to protect our country.

In the wrong version above, leaving the word “our” in the sentence implies that we, the journalist, are included in the story.

It is sometimes not enough just to change a few words. Sometimes you will have to add words of explanation. In the correct sentences above, it is clear who is speaking to whom. However, when changing quotes into reported speech it occasionally becomes less clear, especially in paragraphs later in the story. Suppose the Prime Minister then went on to tell the soldiers: “I can do so much, but I also need your help.”

In reported speech you would then have to write:

The Prime Minister of Fiji told soldiers in Suva that he would do his best to protect their country. He said he could do so much, but he also needed help from the army.

This would be an acceptable solution in writing for radio and television, where you should not use direct quotes in scripts. If you are writing for the print media, the best solution is to give the quotes themselves.

Its and it’s

There is often confusion over these two words. The rule is simple. Use its when referring to something belonging to it. Use it’s as a short form for it is. For example:

• The wounded animal returned to its lair.
• The hunter said: “It’s not clear what is happening at the moment.”

Punctuation

Here are some basic rules of punctuation used in most style books. The Golden Rule of all writing, however, is to keep it simple and clear.

Capital letters

These are used at the beginning of sentences and for the names of people and places. Capitals are also used at the beginning of words which are a titles rather than a description. For example, we write about “the Government of Sri Lanka” because that is the title of one specific body, but we write of “agreements between governments” because we are speaking about governments in general. The following example demonstrates the difference:

• Eight prime ministers attended the meeting, hosted by the Prime Minister of India.

Capital letters should also be used for the trade names of products and companies. For example:

• The Universal Cement Company produces cement called Cemebond.

Full stops

Called “periods” in America, full stops are used at the ends of sentences, as decimal points and with certain standard abbreviated place names. For example, in America Cal. for California or N.Y. for New York; in Australia W.A. for Western Australia or Vic. for Victoria., though it becoming increasingly common to drop the full stops in informal use. However, unless the abbreviation is one well-known to your audience, write the name in full. Journalists working for radio or television normally give the names in full.

When used at the end of a quote, the full stop comes within the closing quotation mark:

He said: “This is not what we wanted.”

Not all abbreviations use full stops. Most newspapers today do not use them to abbreviate Mr, Mrs, Ms, Dr, Rev and similar common titles.

It used to be the case that full stops were used within abbreviations of titles. Increasingly, editors are choosing to leave them out, as in USA, PNG or UN.

Commas

The comma in written English acts very much like a pause in the spoken language. It is used within sentences to separate phrases or lists of words, as in the following example:

The company, which was only set up last year, now produces a range of goods including tyres, steering wheels, exhaust systems and windscreens.

Notice that there is no comma before the and at the end of the list.

Commas should only be inserted to help reading or listening. If you find you have several commas in your sentence, it is probably too long and should be split into separate sentences.

Semi-colons (;)

Their main use is to separate phrases which already contain commas, especially in lists:

The winners were: Bagu Lagi, geology; Jim Ho, physics; Peter Graham, Doro Meeni and Fa’afo Tokala, economics; and Nga Nganda, history.

Colons (:)

There are two principle uses for the colon in news-writing. One is at the start of lists, as in the example above. The second is when going from attribution into a quote:

The judge said: “This is not the first time I have had to deal with this kind of case.”

Apostrophes (‘)

There are several uses for apostrophes. The most common is to show possession. It is usually used in front of an s. In this example, the printery belongs to the company:

Fire last night destroyed the company’s main printery.

However, when a plural noun ends with an s, the apostrophe is not normally followed by another s:

Frank’s jokes were a great success at his parents’ anniversary party.

In the sentence above, the jokes belonged to Frank, so we add an ‘s. However, the word parents already ends in s, so we just add an apostrophe. Apostrophes are also used in contractions in place of missing letters or numbers:

“In the ‘34 gold rush, miners couldn’t get to Bulolo quickly enough,” he said.

Quotation marks (“ “)

These should mainly be used to distinguish spoken words, although some journalists use them when quoting from written reports.

Hyphens (-) and dashes ( – )

Hyphens are used to pull words together, and dashes are used to separate phrases, usually for dramatic effect.

Hyphens are used to join two or more words into one idea, for example: non-agreement, well-meant, Vice-Chancellor, mother-in-law. They are also used in some words to avoid ambiguous meaning. For example, the hyphen distinguishes between re-cover (to cover again) and recover (to get something back).

The dash (which is given more space than a hyphen) is used to indicate a dramatic shift or a surprise phrase, as in the following example intro.

David Paro arrived home from work yesterday to find an unwelcome gift on his verandah – three tonnes of manure.

Do not use the dash unless it is necessary; it can get tiresome to readers.

Question marks (?)

These should only be used after a direct question, which means they usually appear within quotation marks. Examine the following combinations to see the right and wrong uses of question marks:

• RIGHT: The doctor asked Mary: “When did you last give blood?”
• RIGHT: The doctor asked Mary when she had last given blood.
• WRONG: The doctor asked Mary: “When did you last give blood.”
• WRONG: The doctor asked Mary when she had last given blood?

Journalists sometimes wrongly ask their readers questions, particularly in writing features. The journalist’s job is to answer readers’ questions, not leave them guessing, so avoid posing questions.

Exclamation marks (!)

You should not need these in news-writing. In novels they are inserted to signify drama. If you are a good reporter your story should do that for you. You should only use them at the end of a quote which is an exclamation or an order, for example:

Mr Paro took one look at his veranda and said: “Damn!”

Ellipsis (…)

This is a series of three dots put into quotations to show that something has been missed out:

“The car struck several objects … before coming to rest against a tree.”

You should try to avoid this if at all possible, as it suggests to your reader that you are hiding something.

The ellipsis is frequently used instead of a dash in radio and television news-writing. The newsreader knows to allow an expectant pause before finishing the sentence. So in radio, we might rewrite the manure example:

David Paro arrived home yesterday to find an unwelcome gift on his veranda … three tonnes of manure.

Brackets ()

You should also avoid brackets in news-writing. They are meant to contain extra detail within a sentence, but are more often used by lazy journalists to avoid having to rewrite sentences correctly. Some newspapers allow their use when explaining abbreviations, for example:

A surgeon suffering from Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) has been sacked from his job in the country’s main hospital.

To summarise

• Keep your language clear and simple so that your readers or listeners can understand.
  Sentence structure should be simple.
• Check all your work to make sure that everything you write obeys the rules of grammar and punctuation.

This module is taken from The News Manual’s Chapter 12: Language & Style – Grammar and reproduced with permission.

Questions

1. What is the general guideline for using singular or plural verbs with collective nouns in journalism?
2. Provide an example of a sentence where “none” is correctly used as a singular subject.
3. Explain why “every car, bus, bicycle and rickshaw in the city has to be licensed” is correct.
4. Describe the rule for using modifiers in a sentence.
5. How should pronouns be adjusted when converting direct quotes to reported speech?
6. Differentiate between “its” and “it’s” with examples.
7. What is the primary function of a comma in written English?
8. Explain the difference between a hyphen and a dash, providing examples of each.
9. Why should journalists avoid using exclamation marks in news-writing?
10. Discuss the use of ellipsis in journalism and why it should be avoided.

Answers

1. The guideline is to use a singular verb if individuals within the group act as a single body, and a plural verb if the group is noted for its individual parts.
2. “None of the men was willing to testify in court.”
3. “Every” is treated as singular, so the verb “has” is used to agree with the singular subject.
4. Modifiers should attach to the noun nearest to them to ensure clarity in the sentence.
5. Pronouns should be changed to reflect the perspective of the reporter, such as “I” to “he/she” and “our” to “their.”
6. “Its” is used for possession, e.g., “The cat licked its paw.” “It’s” is a contraction for “it is,” e.g., “It’s raining.”
7. A comma is used to separate phrases or lists within sentences, acting like a pause in spoken language.
8. A hyphen joins words together, e.g., “mother-in-law,” while a dash separates phrases for dramatic effect, e.g., “He was late – again.”
9. Exclamation marks are unnecessary in news-writing as the story should convey drama without them.
10. Ellipsis suggests omitted information, which can imply hiding details, so it should be avoided to maintain transparency.

Lesson plan for trainers

If you are a trainer of journalists we have a free lesson plan: ‘Language and style – basics‘ which you are welcome to download and adapt for your own purposes.

The post Grammar for journalists first appeared on Media Helping Media.

If you are a journalist working in a multilingual society, you may have to work in more than one language.

Whether you gather the information in one language and write the story in another, or whether you write a story first in one language and then rewrite in another language, you face the task of translation.

However, if you have a good command of both languages and follow a few simple rules, translation should not be difficult.

This module is written only in English, but the processes we describe always involves two or more languages. It is possible that English will not be one of the languages you work in when translating.

To avoid confusion, we will call the language which you are translating from (or conducting interviews in) the source language; and we will call the language you are translating into (or writing the final story in) the target language.

The principles of translation

The first thing to remember is that translation is the transfer of meaning from one language to another. It is not the transfer of words from language to language.

You must translate the meaning of what is being said, rather than do it word-for-word. This is because languages are not just different words.

Different languages also have different grammar, different word orders, sometimes even words for which other languages do not have any equivalents.

The English spoken by a scientist may have words which a simple farmer cannot even start to imagine. And the farmer is likely to have words for things the technologist never dreamed of.

Simple steps in translation

We will start by talking about the simplest form of translation – the one where you already have a story written down in one language (the source) and you want to translate it into another language (the target). The steps to follow are:

• Read the whole of the original source story through from beginning to end, to make sure that you can understand it. If you cannot understand everything that is said, you cannot translate it. If there are any words or phrases that you do not understand, you must clarify these first. You may decide that the ideas they express are too difficult to translate or not worth translating, but you need to know what they are before you can judge.
• Do a first draft translation, trying to translate all the source material. But do not translate word-for-word. Remember that you are translating the meaning. When you have finished the first translation, you will now have a draft story in the target language.
• Go back over the whole of your draft translation and polish it without looking at the source original. (You might even like to turn the source story face down on your desk so you cannot cheat.) Make sure that your translation reads well in the target language. Compare the final version of your translation with the source original to make sure that you have translated it accurately. This is when you can make any detailed adjustments in individual words or phrases.

False friends

Beware of words or phrases we call “false friends”. These are words in the original source language which you retain in your translation, often because you cannot think of the correct translation.

If you cannot think of the right word, how can you expect your reader or listener to? Of course, languages borrow from each other all the time. If a society comes across a new idea, it may simply use the foreign word without inventing a word of its own.

H however you are translating meaning, not words. If you come across a word in your original language which has no equivalent in the target language, perhaps you can use a phrase (i.e. several words) instead.

For example, many languages do not have a word for “computer”. Instead of retaining the English word “computer”, can you translate it as “a machine which does brain work” or something similar?

Be careful, though, that you do not try to re-invent the community’s language to suit your own way of thinking. If you have problems with translating words, consult experts or ask your colleagues to see if you can reach agreement on the correct translation.

If you are a journalist working in a small language community, the words you decide upon could become the standard usage.

Of course, some foreign words will inevitably creep into other languages. Words such as “computer” are becoming widely accepted by speakers of non-English languages and may eventually be understood by everyone. The problem arises in the time between the foreign word being first introduced and it being understood by everyone.

During such transition periods, use the word untranslated, but follow it immediately with a translation or explanation. For example, you might write in your target language the equivalent of:

The provincial government is to buy computers for each of its local offices. The computers are machines which will help office staff to keep accounts, write letters and do other jobs.

Dictionaries

You cannot translate words in isolation. Words get their meaning from how they are used in each situation – what we call their context. You must do a contextual translation.

You should use a bilingual dictionary where one is available, but be careful when looking up translations for individual words. Dictionaries are useful, but there is very often more than one translation for individual words. The best dictionary is one which defines the word in its various contexts.

For example, a simple English word like “skip” has several quite different meanings. It can mean any of the following, depending on the context: to move lightly, especially by jumping from one foot to another; to omit or leave something out; to deal with something quickly and without much thought; a large container for transporting building materials, especially waste. It can even be short for “skipper”, the captain of a ship or sports team. You can see that using the wrong translation of “skip” could have some unfortunate results.

Listen to the little voice in your head if it tells you that a translation seems strange. It is better to ask advice than to write something silly. You may not know all the uses for each word, especially slang words which you cannot find in dictionaries. For example, mechanics often refer to an adjustable spanner as a “monkey wrench”, when it has nothing to do with monkeys.

Writing style

You do not have to be an expert in linguistics to make good translations. If you know your target language well, you can usually hear in your head whether the sentence sounds correct in your translation.

Your translation should not try to duplicate the word order or grammatical construction used in the source language unless it is also correct in your target language. For example, some languages put the verb (the “doing word”) at the beginning of a sentence, some in the middle and some at the very end.

You do not have to use all the words from your source material for translation if your target language can cope without them. For example, we may say in English “The ship sank lower in the water”, whereas in another language the words “in the water” may be unnecessary because the words for “sink” in relation to “ship” already includes the idea of “water”.

Also, do not be afraid of using more words in your translation than in the original. Although in journalism you should aim to keep your sentences short and crisp, this must not be allowed to interfere with the clarity of the ideas you are trying to communicate.

Some other problem areas

Translation is a very big and complicated field which we cannot discuss in great detail here. However, the following are some other problem areas you might want to keep in mind:

Understatements and euphemisms

Be aware of the cultural differences in languages. Some languages like to hide unpleasant facts beneath understatements or euphemism. Euphemisms are mild or inoffensive words which are used in the place of harsh or hurtful words.

Some speakers might use humour in one situation which another language would not permit. Again, you must understand the meaning in context.

Linking words

Words such as “although”, “but”, “from”, “even” and a host of others are usually very important in English, as they are used to show the relationships between the words in your sentences. Getting these small words wrong can alter entirely the sense of the sentence.

Verbs

These can sometimes cause problems in their different forms. There are, for example, quite distinct meanings for the words “can”, “may”, “must” and “should”. If you are not sure, it is best to avoid the construction altogether and say it a different way.

Accuracy

Some languages are more accurate than others in certain areas. For example, many language groups in Papua New Guinea have more than 10 different words for varieties of sweet potato. The Inuit Indians of Canada have different words for 20 separate things which in English we just call “snow”.

English is not a precise language in many areas. Be aware that a vagueness in English may not be acceptable in another language. For example, we can say “Doctor Smith” in English, whereas in Chinese we have to know the gender of the doctor to translate the word “doctor”.

Ambiguity

Sometimes the exact meaning in the source language is left unclear (ambiguous) on purpose, in which case you should try to keep it that way. This is especially so when reporting claims, accusations and hearsay evidence in such things as police stories.

For example, a person might be charged in English with “unlawful carnal knowledge”, which usually means a sexual offence against a person under the age of consent. You should not translate that as “rape of a child” or “sodomy of a little boy” or any other specific sexual act unless that is part of the charge. It is better in this case to use a phrase similar to “a sexual offence against a young person”.

Names and titles

There is still a debate about the need or otherwise of translating names from one language into another.

For example, would you retain the English title “Education Department” or translate it into something like “office for schools”? Of course, a lot depends on how the rest of your community use the term, especially those people who are most closely involved, such as the Education Department itself.

Your newspaper, radio or television station may have a policy on this. If not, perhaps you should get together to decide on a policy, taking into account how the community in general deals with names and titles.

Get a large, hard-bound exercise book for the newsdesk, thumb-indexed A to Z down the side. You can call this your Translation Style Guide. Once you have agreed on the correct translation for any problem word, enter the word with its translation on to the correct page in the book.

Revise the book every so often to make sure that all the entries are still relevant. If your newsroom computers are networked, create a common file which everyone can access.

There are two ways people use names (or titles). The first is to identify the place or person, the second is to describe their function.

It is usual to leave untranslated names which act as signposts for people, but translate those names which describe a function.

For example, you would not translate the word “Baker” in the name “Baker Street”, because it acts as a signpost, but you would probably translate the name “Police Station”.

If a language used by your community is also used elsewhere in the world, you should remain aware of how it is spoken in other countries.

For example, French may be commonly used in your society, so you need to keep up-to-date with how French is used in other French-speaking countries. Remember that all languages change, especially in their motherland.

onstantly refresh your understanding of the way the language is developing both in your own society and elsewhere.

Translation during news gathering

So far, we have talked mainly about rewriting a story in one language into a story in another language. But your work may involve interviewing in one language and writing the story itself in another language.

For example, your newspaper may be printed in English, but you have to interview a villager in his mother tongue which is not English.

The best way of doing this is to conduct the interview in the villager’s language and make your notes in that language too. You can then translate your quotes into English as you write your story.

This method means that, while you are conducting the interview, you can ask questions in the villager’s language to clarify any doubtful points. You can also check your story back with him in his language to make sure you have the facts correct.

However, some languages may have been written down only recently and so may not have a clear and easy written form in which to make your notes. If this is so, and if you are fluent in both languages, you may be able to listen in the villager’s language while making your notes in English. You are translating as you listen and write.

This may work perfectly well, but a word of warning: Trying to translate while also concentrating on what the villager is saying may introduce errors into your notes. Ask the villager to slow down a little so that you can make your notes, then check your notes at the end of the interview by translating them back into the villager’s language for him.

Radio and television journalists can overcome this problem by using their tape recorders, but newspaper reporters might also find a tape recorder useful in such situations. You should still make notes, but have a tape recorder running at the same time so that you can check later to make sure that you made the correct translation during the interview.

There is one final complication of which you must be aware. This comes when you are interviewing in a source language, writing your story in a target language and then having to translate the same story back into the source language.

This might occur if you have to produce a special language bulletin or an edition of your newspaper in the source language. The danger is that you might not get an exact translation back into the source language, and so you might misquote someone.

When writing a story which has to be translated twice, always refer back to your original notes when writing your second story, so that you can get the quotes exactly right.

This module is taken from The News Manual’s Chapter 13: Language & Style – Translation.

Questions

1. What is the primary task of a journalist working in a multilingual society according to the text?
2. Define the terms “source language” and “target language” as used in the text.
3. Explain why translation is described as the transfer of meaning rather than the transfer of words.
4. What are “false friends” in the context of translation, and why should they be avoided?
5. Describe the process of contextual translation and its importance.
6. How can cultural differences impact translation, particularly with understatements and euphemisms?
7. Discuss the challenges that linking words and verbs can pose in translation.
8. Why is it important to consider the precision of language when translating, as illustrated by the example of sweet potatoes and snow?
9. How should a journalist handle names and titles during translation, and what factors should influence this decision?
10. What are the potential complications of translating a story back into the source language, and how can they be mitigated?

Answers

1. The primary task is translation, which involves working in more than one language to gather information and write stories.
2. The “source language” is the language from which you are translating, and the “target language” is the language into which you are translating.
3. Translation is the transfer of meaning because languages have different grammar, word orders, and sometimes no direct word equivalents.
4. “False friends” are words retained in translation due to a lack of correct translation, leading to potential misunderstandings.
5. Contextual translation involves understanding words in their specific context, as words can have multiple meanings.
6. Cultural differences can lead to misinterpretations if euphemisms or humor are not appropriately translated.
7. Linking words and verbs can change the meaning of sentences if not translated correctly, affecting the overall message.
8. Precision is important because some languages have more specific terms for certain concepts, which can affect clarity.
9. Names and titles should be translated based on their function and community usage, considering how they are used locally and globally.
10. Translating back into the source language can lead to inaccuracies; referring to original notes can help ensure accuracy.

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