Ragan's Public Service Announcement on "G.O.D. Disorder"

Posted by Katie Noonan

Here is a great video from Ragan on what they call "Grammar Obsessive Disorder." Definitely worth checking out if you want a laugh.

It is worth mentioning though, that good grammar is essential in PR. A press release replete with grammatical errors will get tossed by members of the media and thus, your story will never be told. Poor grammar makes you appear unprofessional, uneducated or simply lazy. As a rule of thumb, PR practitioners should always consult the AP Stylebook whenever they issue a press release to the media.

Grammar gets a little tricky though in the Internet age, especially as the media makes the move to the Internet. For example, according to the AP Stylebook the proper term is "Web site," yet "web site" is more commonly used in search engine search terms. That means that it's important to tailor your message differently depending on your targeted audience. When posting a press release to issue on your Web site, it's more important to use terms that "Googlers" would be likely to search rather than those mandated by the AP Stylebook. However, when submitting news to an online news site, still use AP Stylebook guidelines.