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January 1, 2008
Likability.
I think I have figured it out (and it has to do with a word I used twice in the first three words of this sentence).
In heading around the "feeds" last night to see what folks were saying about the writers' strike, I noticed the title of a post by major entertainment news source Nikki Finke.
As I Expected, Big Media Ignore Pro-WGA Sky Messages Over The Rose Parade
And suddenly, it hit me, why it is that people (even fans of Nikki Finke, like me) might have a hard time liking the woman at times.
The title of the blog post, if made by a more likable person, would've been one word shorter.
As Expected, Big Media Ignore... reads a hell of a lot more "one of us" than As I Expected, Big Media Ignore... (especially considering the fact that EVERYONE expected it).
And--putting aside the strike, making this all about semantics and not at all about the topic--there's something nice and "we're all in this together" that makes some people inherently more "readable" than others. Sure, some readers want experts. They crave directives. They hunger for being told JUST how it is.
But I think there's something really exciting about knowing what your simplest word choices might be saying to your readers.
(Could this be why I suddenly like Harvey Levin more, lately? He's just so dang, "into it" without being sooo inside--and proud of it--that he needs to show us he's IN more than he wants to share his toys.)
Believe me, I'll remain a huge fan of Nikki's, despite her overindulgence in, "I broke the story and no one is giving me credit for it," moments or anything else that makes folks say they don't love her. I can only imagine how cray-cray my life would feel if my column's 50,000 hits per week neared the numbers she must get, or if I received ten times the 200 or so emails I get per day. (And, yeah, I know it is probably nowhere near Nikki's top goal to be likable.)
Hmm. Something to ponder, at least. Maybe by journalism students out there.
Posted by bonnie at January 1, 2008 10:14 PM