NO, PERO WHY?

“Sorry if” is doing a lot of work.

Quick cases



Gia’s draft says “Sorry if anyone misunderstood.” The post itself wrongly blamed younger visitors for a delay. People understood the words accurately.



VOZ ASKS

Does the sentence name the inaccurate claim, or only how someone felt?



TRY ONE RESPONSE

Keep it because it sounds calm.

It places the problem on readers and does not correct the inaccurate claim.



TRY ANOTHER RESPONSE

Name the inaccurate claim, correct it and state what will change.

The audience gets information and an accountable next step, without having to reassure the writer.



MAKE SOMETHING USEFUL

Rewrite the first two sentences of the apology.



TELL A FRIEND

We said something inaccurate. Here is the correction and what we are doing about the mistake.

Say it your way. Keep the supported meaning and the part you still need to check.



READING

Society of Professional Journalists: Verification, context and accountability

https://www.spj.org/spj-code-of-ethics/

Professional ethical guidance is not a statute or a guarantee that a claim is true.



MY NOTES