Comments on: Press Conference Tips http://thefirepio.com/2010/02/10/press-conference-tips/ Information for today's Public Information Officer Wed, 30 Mar 2011 07:01:01 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Laura McGaffey http://thefirepio.com/2010/02/10/press-conference-tips/comment-page-1/#comment-18 Laura McGaffey Thu, 11 Feb 2010 05:51:13 +0000 http://thefirepio.com/?p=175#comment-18 The following is a form letter our department fire chief composed and mailed recently. ----- February 4, 2010 As of today date your being asked to return all property issued to you by the ____ Fire District (any PPE, Radio's, Tools, etc.). This property must be returned within 30 days or further action will be taken. Sincerely, Chief Ignoramous ----- The receivers of this letter literally burst out laughing at the illiteracy and ignorance of the chief being displayed. First, he sent it to VOLUNTEERS who OWN their own equipment; there's nothing for them to return. Second, there are several individuals the chief could have turned to for help proofing it. The chief LOST credibility within our very small community and among the Fire Board members when the letter made the rounds of the local watering holes. The following is a form letter our department fire chief composed and mailed recently.

—–
February 4, 2010

As of today date your being asked to return all property issued to you by the ____ Fire District (any PPE, Radio’s, Tools, etc.). This property must be returned within 30 days or further action will be taken.

Sincerely,

Chief Ignoramous
—–

The receivers of this letter literally burst out laughing at the illiteracy and ignorance of the chief being displayed. First, he sent it to VOLUNTEERS who OWN their own equipment; there’s nothing for them to return. Second, there are several individuals the chief could have turned to for help proofing it. The chief LOST credibility within our very small community and among the Fire Board members when the letter made the rounds of the local watering holes.

]]> By: Laura McGaffey http://thefirepio.com/2010/02/10/press-conference-tips/comment-page-1/#comment-16 Laura McGaffey Thu, 11 Feb 2010 05:24:53 +0000 http://thefirepio.com/?p=175#comment-16 1.) Don't use "myself" to look educated, unless you are absolutely sure it's not "I" or "me" you should use. As my teachers suggested when I in fourth grade, the best way to determine which word to use, is to test its use by itself. Sentences to check for accuracy: a) Myself and my wife went to the store. Myself went to the store. WRONG I went to the store. CORRECT! A second problem with the original sentence is that it should be "My wife and I...". One always puts the other first in the sentence. b) The loud noise scared my dog and myself. The loud noise scared myself. WRONG The loud noise scared ME. CORRECT! 2.) Don’t use any form of the phrase “begs the question”, unless you are absolutely sure what it means and that it applies. The phrase is regularly used incorrectly. Briefly put, “begging the question” is a fallacy in logical argument. It DOES NOT mean that the issue being discussed requires or suggests a question needing to be posed. A good description of the “begging the question” fallacy can be found in “The Trivium”, a book by Sister Miriam Joseph Rauh, edited by Marguerite McGlinn, published by Paul Dry Books, 2002. Educated people know the proper use of "myself" and know what "begging the question" is and cringe at their misuse. Proverbs 17:28 says "Even a fool is counted wise when he holds his peace; when he shuts his lips, he is considered perceptive." If you aren't absolutely positive of the grammatical correctness and proper spelling of the words in ALL your communications then you should consider finding someone who can help you proof your written communications and coach you before you give a speech. 1.) Don’t use “myself” to look educated, unless you are absolutely sure it’s not “I” or “me” you should use. As my teachers suggested when I in fourth grade, the best way to determine which word to use, is to test its use by itself.

Sentences to check for accuracy:

a) Myself and my wife went to the store.

Myself went to the store. WRONG
I went to the store. CORRECT!

A second problem with the original sentence is that it should be “My wife and I…”. One always puts the other first in the sentence.

b) The loud noise scared my dog and myself.

The loud noise scared myself. WRONG
The loud noise scared ME. CORRECT!

2.) Don’t use any form of the phrase “begs the question”, unless you are absolutely sure what it means and that it applies. The phrase is regularly used incorrectly.

Briefly put, “begging the question” is a fallacy in logical argument. It DOES NOT mean that the issue being discussed requires or suggests a question needing to be posed.

A good description of the “begging the question” fallacy can be found in “The Trivium”, a book by Sister Miriam Joseph Rauh, edited by Marguerite McGlinn, published by Paul Dry Books, 2002.

Educated people know the proper use of “myself” and know what “begging the question” is and cringe at their misuse. Proverbs 17:28 says “Even a fool is counted wise when he holds his peace; when he shuts his lips, he is considered perceptive.” If you aren’t absolutely positive of the grammatical correctness and proper spelling of the words in ALL your communications then you should consider finding someone who can help you proof your written communications and coach you before you give a speech.

]]> By: Laura McGaffey http://thefirepio.com/2010/02/10/press-conference-tips/comment-page-1/#comment-14 Laura McGaffey Thu, 11 Feb 2010 04:33:53 +0000 http://thefirepio.com/?p=175#comment-14 Important: making sure everyone in the department learns to check ALL communications, both internal and announcements to the press, for grammatical correctness and proper spelling. Every time I receive an email, text message, business letter, or memo filled with errors my estimation of the sender's intelligence and education drops considerably. I lose overall confidence in the person, if for no other reason than that their sloppy writing indicates an overall lack of concern for proficiency. Important: making sure everyone in the department learns to check ALL communications, both internal and announcements to the press, for grammatical correctness and proper spelling. Every time I receive an email, text message, business letter, or memo filled with errors my estimation of the sender’s intelligence and education drops considerably. I lose overall confidence in the person, if for no other reason than that their sloppy writing indicates an overall lack of concern for proficiency.

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