How to ditch the drivel Thursday May 27, 2010
Can you ‘deringfence’ that?
Jargon pops up in far too many places. A great example, as noted by The Guardian, was in the ConDem government’s press release on their first set of changes, which talked about ‘deringfencing’ funding. Ouch.
Two pain-free ways to extract jargon
So how do know whether jargon is getting in the way of your message? One – you can check by getting professional help from an experienced copywriter. Two – you can try out the Plain English Campaign’s fantastically named Drivel Defence.
Is your copy clear as mud?
I recently wrote about the work of the Plain English Campaign in taking on copy-related confusion from a Police and community group. Their Drivel Defence resource is a quick way to check copy for the unclear and unsightly. Making space for what you really mean to say. I wonder if Cam-Clegg will give it a go.
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