AP Nerds Trying to Remove the Fun from Sports Writing
Worst tweet of the week goes to the APStylebook. Look at the community notes:
Additionally, the third sentence is wrong because scoring 10 “unanswered” points is not always the same as scoring 10 “straight” points. Joel Embiid could score 10 points in a row while Daniel Gafford and someone else combine for six on the other end. You can individually score 10 straight points that might not be unanswered points.
The first sentence is also dubious. Losing a game is not a disaster? Has anyone at the Associated Press watched Philly sports in the past five years? There were at least 15 disasters that took place over the past half-decade. Game 1 of the Phillies/Mets NLDS is a good recent example.
The other thing is this: who cares? Why should we give a shit what the AP Stylebook says in 2024? Telling us to use the word “homers” instead of “dingers,” “jacks,” or “bombs.” Slang is fun. Synonyms make for easier reading. This is sport, not a college dissertation. Part of the idea here is to have a good time and not take things too seriously. @APStylebook is trying to be the writing police when the the reality is that readers just don’t care about this. The only people who care work in academia and/or are boomers. Just make your own rules. Ask yourself if successful websites like Barstool and Crossing Broad should adhere to AP style or Chicago Manual. It’s literally the last thing on my mind. There’s no way I’m asking the staff to work within some dated and rigid framework of writing. I can’t even get Pagan to figure out the difference between “then” and “than,” so let’s start there first.
— Kevin Kinkead (@Kevin_Kinkead) October 25, 2024