The Writer's Weekly

Good morning one and all!

The writers' strike is now over and all the programs have changed on TV. It certainly didn't take the networks long to spring into action.

Now that the writers have a contract regarding the Web streaming of TV shows after their initial broadcast there's not much more to say about the whole issue at this point. Hopefully the networks have learned the value of professional writers. (And I read that Jay Leno is thrilled that his writers are back. He had something like 11 animal spots over the last 6 weeks!)

So what should I talk about now? Well, I've been pondering that very question. Let me think...hmm...well, what about the importance of proofreading in media publications?

While I was reading The Montreal Gazette this morning I came across an inordinate number of typos and it was really irksome. I will e-mail the head editor about this and offer my services because it was outrageous.

Here are two examples from the opening section:

• An random survey of almost 3,000 women across Canada... (Page A6 in the article Most women think they're overweight, survey finds)
• ...slid off the runway but caused to injuries. (Page A13 in the caption for the photo titled No injuries after plane skids off runway)

These examples are pretty bad because they aren't just repeated words they are the wrong words. And 't' isn't even close to 'n' on the keyboard!

I saw many others when I was reading this morning and it concerns me. This is the Montreal paper that most people read. It really doesn't say much for our city or the English community.

I am not blaming any one person here. The writers aren't to blame because an editor should be reviewing every piece before it goes to print. And I know the editors often don't have enough time to check pieces the way they should, but these recurring errors are a clear sign that The Gazette's editorial process is failing!

The Gazette needs to address this problem immediately and find out why the editorial process isn't working and fix it!