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Why oh why can't we have a better press corp?
A May 31 Metro article about the Scripps National Spelling Bee misspelled last year's winning word. The correct spelling is serrefine.
The paper, The Washington Post, had chosen the obviously incorrect "serrifine." Here is my source.
Addendum: Whoops! I have corrected my spelling error. At least I wrote the mistaken spelling of the newspaper correctly rather than vice versa, force of habit took over I suppose.
Posted by Tyler Cowen on June 7, 2008 at 10:49 AM in Current Affairs | Permalink
Comments
I don't get it. Those look the same to me.
Posted by: PLW at Jun 7, 2008 11:00:39 AM
It's one of those tricky words where the "h" is not only silent, but also invisible.
Posted by: Kieran at Jun 7, 2008 11:03:24 AM
This is an example of the internet spelling hex. When you try to correct spelling in an internet posting, you are instantly cursed and forced to mis-spell a word.
Posted by: Ted Dunning at Jun 7, 2008 11:30:31 AM
...is this just to see if anyone will be compelled to post a correction in the comments here? "Serrifine" was the Post's error. (Just as obviously incorrect, which I say as a former contestant.)
Posted by: Kat at Jun 7, 2008 11:32:26 AM
What's the point of spelling bees?
I've been reading several hours a day for decades, and invariably these spelling bees feature words that I have never encountered once in my lifetime, nor do I expect I ever will.
I guess it's just another great American silly pastime, like competitive eating.
Posted by: at Jun 7, 2008 12:27:08 PM
Competitive eating is worse. At least being able to spell is useful, even if these people take it to an absurd extreme.
Posted by: Ansel F at Jun 7, 2008 2:52:29 PM
Brad Delong might not be so happy about the title of your post...I expect you to be more creative Prof.Cowen.
Posted by: Student at Jun 7, 2008 2:58:27 PM
It's Press Core, for heaven's sake.
Posted by: Kieran at Jun 7, 2008 3:23:49 PM
Is a "press corp" kinda like News Corp.?
Posted by: Dave at Jun 7, 2008 4:53:37 PM
To win at a speling bee is it necsesary to kno the werds meaning as wel?
Posted by: Stuart at Jun 8, 2008 7:32:32 AM
@Ansel F:
Yeah, we all know how useless eating is...
Posted by: Benquo at Jun 8, 2008 9:12:50 AM
To be excessively pedantic here, I'd just like to throw in that it is Press Corps. In full sympathy, I have to ask why these mistakes always happen when one is snarking about others? Blog-Karma?
Posted by: Sam at Jun 8, 2008 11:17:13 AM
Thanks for being explicit, Sam. I think Kieran and I were hinting at exactly that, but Tyler hasn't picked up on it yet.
Posted by: Dave at Jun 8, 2008 4:29:07 PM
