A Boulder Daily Camera headline that really sucks

The Camera plunges into suckage. Daily newspapers are notoriously cautious when it comes to language issues. A More Messages blog from August notes that the Rocky Mountain News's spelled the word "ass" as "a--" in a piece that quoted Colorado Republican Party chieftain Dick Wadhams. In addition, the Rocky posted...

By Michael Roberts

October 6, 2008

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The Camera plunges into suckage.

Daily newspapers are notoriously cautious when it comes to language issues. A More Messages blog from August notes that the Rocky Mountain News's spelled the word "ass" as "a--" in a piece that quoted Colorado Republican Party chieftain Dick Wadhams. In addition, the Rocky posted a snippet from a George Carlin routine called "Just Enough B.S." that contained no naughty lingo whatsoever -- amazing given the late Carlin's fondness for profanity. And a 2005 Message column points out that the Denver Post twice spelled "sucks" as "su---" as recently as 2001.

When viewed in this context, an opinion piece by Bob Greenlee published in the October 5 Boulder Daily Camera is mighty bold. Not only does it contain a prominent "sucks": It places the word in a headline that reads, "More Bucks Simply Sucks."

At this writing, the comments generated by the offering deal with the crux of Greenlee's argument, not the way the Camera labeled it. The lack of reader outcry begs the question: What's the next slightly risqué word to jump to daily newspaper headline status? "Bastard"? "Bitch"? "Va-jay-jay"? The future of journalism hangs in the balance... -- Michael Roberts

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Michael Roberts began his career with Westword in 1990 as music editor. In 1999, he took on a new role, full-time media reporter, as author of a column called The Message. In 2008, he became the lead writer for Westword's news blog, The Latest Word, a position he held until January 2023. Michael continues to freelance for Westword, covering everything from business to sports and the media; he also contributes to Jazziz, a national music magazine. He holds a bachelor's degree from what is now Colorado Mesa University and master's degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles, and Northwestern University.

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