Andre Yoskowitz
12 Jun 2010 13:27
The international newspaper The New York Times has announced today that the word "Tweet," used to describe the action of writing a message on Twitter, has been banned from the paper, in print and online.
'Tweet' can of course, still be used to describe the sound a bird makes, notes Phil Corbett, the Times' standards editor, who announced the change. "Someday, 'tweet' may be as common as 'e-mail,'" says Corbett, but for now it is banned "outside of ornithological contexts."
The ban was made because the word tweet, outside of bird noises, isn't "standard English and standard English is what we should use in news articles," adds Corbett.
Additionally, Corbett says that not everyone uses or has even heard of Twitter and therefore may not be familiar with the new use of the word "tweet."
How will The NY Times describe tweets now? "Let's look for deft, English alternatives: use Twitter, post to or on Twitter, write on Twitter, a Twitter message, a Twitter update. Or, once you've established that Twitter is the medium, simply use 'say' or 'write.' "