Ali Killian

@ali_killian

deputy copy chief | previously: , | grad | thoroughly over-caffeinated individual

Joined October 2013
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  1. Pinned Tweet
    25 May 2017

    Me at the first sign of commitment

    3 replies 3 retweets 37 likes
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  2. Retweeted
    6 hours ago

    Thanks for a great chat, , , , ! This hour went so fast! I bet your will be amazing!

    Today has been an enlightening chat. Thank you, , , , and .
    3 replies 1 retweet 5 likes
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  3. 6 hours ago

    I’d also be okay with this

    Let's bring back thee, thy, and thou! (?)
    3 likes
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  4. 6 hours ago

    Also this! I use y’all ALL the time. It’s gender-neutral and comes with a fun accent.

    A3: The word "y'all." English doesn't have a second-person plural pronoun officially, but this would work beautifully.
    2 replies 7 likes
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  5. 6 hours ago

    Yes, definitely. This is why it’s important to have clear communication with sources, reporters and editors, especially with sensitive material

    Even better: "x person, diagnosed with y condition...." "With" implies universal fact. Many may disagree with particular diagnoses.
    4 likes
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  6. 6 hours ago

    Same! I constantly have my bookmark open

    Replying to @HerbertStyles @megan_stolz and 4 others
    We love SO, SO much.
    4 likes
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  7. 6 hours ago

    I love this idea, FWIW!

    will personal pronouns be on our name tags this year?
    1 reply 5 likes
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  8. Retweeted
    6 hours ago
    Replying to

    A3: This is a personal pet peeve, but I want to abolish the term "LGBTQ community." It’s not a singular community! It’s an unwieldy umbrella term for a huge number of communities, some interconnected and some very distinct.

    4 replies 1 retweet 13 likes
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  9. 6 hours ago

    A3: I’d love to stop using battle language as the default for mental illnesses, disabilities or other conditions. I don’t “fight” my endometriosis; I live with it. But if someone describes themselves as “fighting” their condition, as always, self-identifiers are fine

    Q3: What’s one style change you’d like to see adopted more broadly?
    2 replies 18 likes
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  10. Retweeted
    7 hours ago

    I think some people misconstrue forward-thinking language as politically liberal or pushing an agenda, but when you get down to it, it's primarily about being as accurate and respectful as possible.

    Q2: What are the risks of allowing your language to have an ethical or moral agenda? What do you gain or lose by giving up the claim of neutral language?
    2 replies 10 retweets 25 likes
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  11. Retweeted
    7 hours ago

    The "ethical or moral agenda" we're talking about here is respect for the person or people you're writing about. If you're writing about people, it's your job to respect them with your language choices.

    Q2: What are the risks of allowing your language to have an ethical or moral agenda? What do you gain or lose by giving up the claim of neutral language?
    1 retweet 7 likes
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  12. 6 hours ago

    Absolutely. Related to this: We encourage our reporters to always ask their sources what their pronouns are. The sources will usually be happy to be represented correctly, or they’ll be confused as to why we asked, and that’s an educational opportunity.

    It's important to ask people how they want to be defined. Some who've been sexually assaulted want to be identified as survivors or victims. Others don't like either label. Using "man" or "woman" may be your only workaround.
    1 reply 11 likes
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  13. Retweeted
    7 hours ago

    A1: I think it's all about where you make concessions and break style rules. As an editor, I'm always going to honor pronouns and talk about communities in the language they want used. (1/2)

    Q2: What are the risks of allowing your language to have an ethical or moral agenda? What do you gain or lose by giving up the claim of neutral language?
    1 reply 1 retweet 7 likes
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  14. Retweeted
    7 hours ago
    Replying to and

    Little-known fact: The and style guide are in love. 😍

    1 retweet 10 likes
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  15. Retweeted
    7 hours ago
    Replying to

    A2: However, I think those risks are minimal. You would be surprised what audiences and writers can adjust to (give them some credit!), and the key to maintaining authority is transparency, not opaque claims of neutrality.

    1 reply 1 retweet 7 likes
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  16. Retweeted
    7 hours ago
    Replying to

    A2: The risk is that your audience will feel alienated by language it doesn’t understand, or that writers will feel their autonomy is taken away by editors with an agenda. Especially when the media is constantly under attack, there’s risk in giving up an authority label

    2 replies 1 retweet 5 likes
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  17. 6 hours ago

    Hard agree here

    Replying to @copyeditors
    A2: I'd argue that there's no such thing as "neutral" language; in fact, those who make the claim often come in w/ their own biases. Conscious style guides are a way to question the idea of "neutrality."
    5 likes
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  18. Retweeted
    7 hours ago
    Replying to and

    I see writers refer to people who lived with or are living with cancer as "cancer survivors," which we try to avoid when editing because that's not how all people with cancer want to be defined — but some self-identify that way, and that's OK too!

    1 retweet 6 likes
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  19. 7 hours ago

    Representative language has to do with respecting someone’s personhood and identity and letting them self-define, so saying someone “uses a wheelchair” (person-first language) rather than being “wheelchair-bound,” with “bound” having a restrictive connotation.

    @KaitlinJakola I think I understand, but there have been a couple of requests for examples—could you provide an instance?
    1 reply 1 retweet 2 likes
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  20. 7 hours ago

    Yes! We have a whole list of entries in our style guide — some that differ from and some that don’t — with explanations indicating when and how to use the terms. (cc: , as she asked for more examples as well!)

    Replying to @mschristinema @ali_killian and 4 others
    Can more examples be found in your respective stlye guides?
    3 likes
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  21. Retweeted
    7 hours ago
    Replying to and

    I love these sections from our about using gender-neutral job titles and people-first language. (Link here: )

    1 reply 4 retweets 16 likes
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