Because we (still) are a two-daily-newspaper market, we periodically see print coverage that makes for interesting comparisons – from scoops to layouts to accuracy to news judgments. Here’s something that caught my juxtaposition-junkie eye recently.
Both the St. Petersburg Times and the Tampa Tribune ran a story last week about a former Hillsborough County inmate who told a jury that jail staff refused to treat her medical condition that left her bleeding for some 12 hours. The Times’ headline read: “Inmate says jail ignored bleeding.” The Trib version read: “Woman who peed blood says jailers ignored pleas.”
I know living languages are constantly changing and standard usages are always evolving. Having said that, if I want an alternative publication, I’ll pick one up. There’s a reason why they’re called “alternative.” I would expect to see the crude (ok, edgy) likes of that second headline in Creative Loafing, not this city’s flagship newspaper. At least not quite yet.
Surely, I’m not the only reader surprised, possibly offended and maybe, well, PO’ed by such poor taste and sophomoric editing.