Every year around Field Day, the media inundates the masses with amateur radio articles about this great event, and every year, many of them take the simple way out of concocting an original thought and throw a meager story in the back of the "Lifestyles" section with the words "Ham it up" in the title (i.e. "Area amateurs will 'ham it up'...", or simply go lazy and headline "Ham it up" in 72 pt font with a subtitle explaining what they mean, and dashing the hopes of some who might think it was a pork barbecue session.
Here's a few examples from this year's batch.
And it's not just Field Day. Hamfests also tend to bring the phrase back into the limelight as well.
It's not that it's obscene, or derogatory, or condescending. It's just cliched and unoriginal.
I would encourage anyone who's arranging PR for their club or group to encourage their media contact to refrain from using this phrase in their story. No headline, subtitle, placement in the main article, not even in the captions of any photos.
I hope it isn't just me on this thought.
Here's a few examples from this year's batch.
And it's not just Field Day. Hamfests also tend to bring the phrase back into the limelight as well.
It's not that it's obscene, or derogatory, or condescending. It's just cliched and unoriginal.
I would encourage anyone who's arranging PR for their club or group to encourage their media contact to refrain from using this phrase in their story. No headline, subtitle, placement in the main article, not even in the captions of any photos.
I hope it isn't just me on this thought.
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