Journal 1

1) Word of the week: myriad. The writer used the word as a noun to describe the vast array of things you can buy for $15. Myriad can also be used an as adjective. Merriam-Webster describes myriad, the noun, as "a great number" and also as the number 10,000. Webster's defines the adjective as "consisting of a very great, but indefinite, number; as, myriad stars." It has bases in classical Greek but in modern English the word refers to an unspecified large quantity. The reason I found the word interesting is because of the two different usages. I've seen it used frequently in various media platforms over the past six months. Merriam-Webster has an interesting take: "Recent criticism of the use of myriad as a noun, both in the plural form myriads and in the phrase a myriad of, seems to reflect a mistaken belief that the word was originally and is still properly only an adjective. As the entries here show, however, the noun is in fact the older form, dating to the 16th century. The noun myriad has appeared in the works of such writers as Milton (plural myriads) and Thoreau (a myriad of), and it continues to occur frequently in reputable English. There is no reason to avoid it."

2) Catch of the week: The catch for this entry came in an article I wrote following the Florida women's basketball team's victory over Arkansas. The editor that night decided to cut a graf from the middle of the copy that introduced a player named Lanita Bartley. The kicker quote is from Bartley, but since she had not been mentioned prior, the editor had to use her full name in the attribution. Instead of Bartley the copy was printed with "Lanita Hartley." The day of the week is also wrong in the editor's rewritten sentence, so there is essentially two fact errors within four words of each other. Talk about a nightmare. While cutting the graf that originally contained her name was not a mistake, the editor should have corrected the last name to be "Bartley" and used Sunday instead of Monday for the day of the week.

3) Headline challenge: Creativity in the Arts and Sciences Event Sunday. Not only is this headline confusing, but it's lacking appeal. I would've used: Free event to feature 3-D art, dance and music. I feel it's a more alluring headline and would create reader interest in the story. Unfortunately, there is minimal reporting done and the article is not very informative.

4) Favorite passage of the week: This passage appears in Malcolm Gladwell's feature in the New Yorker entitled "Offensive Play." In it, he compares life in the NFL with dogfighting, and provides this stark account from an actual dogfight.
"Snow goes straight for the throat and grabs hold with her razor-sharp teeth. Almost immediately, blood flows from Black’s throat. Despite a serious injury to the throat, Black manages to continue fighting back. They are relentless, each battling the other and neither willing to accept defeat."