As I mentioned in my post, The Unparalleled World-Class Mission-Critical Hero: Words Sucked Dry In Business, some terms just get under your skin and start gnawing their way toward your brain. Obviously, this has resulted in mass hysteria in some business circles.
But the people are not taking this lying down! They’re fighting back by… (more…)
Categories: Random Observations
Tagged: business, jargon, language, slang, terminology
Despite an economy that resembles roadkill, America still excels at media, including entertainment and news. We give good hype, and the Internet brings it to the rest of the world 24/7. One problem: all this unfiltered Yankee content poses a linguistic challenge for people in other countries, even those fluent in English. That’s because Americans also excel at screwing with the language — and I’m not just talking about Miss South Carolina (warning: excruciating cringe-inducing video ahead)… (more…)
Categories: Random Observations
Tagged: beer, media, Urban Dictionary, words, journalism, language, slang, communications, Jumping The Shark, Soccer Moms, Joe Six Pack, swiftboating, Miss South Carolina, Happy Days, John Kerry, Jim Jones, Jonestown, Nixon, Watergate, expressions
As a USC Trojan, I have a twisted interest in the Ohio State University football team this season. I was thrilled when my Trojans throttled them earlier this season 35-3, but this weekend, I’ll be rooting for the Buckeyes as they play Penn State. (Penn State is ranked higher than USC, and therefore must be vanquished.) Will Ohio State win? No idea. But I can make one prediction with 100% certainty… (more…)
Categories: How To Tips
Tagged: automobiles, Buckeyes, cars, communications, Dan Neil, grammar, language, marketing, Ohio State University, Toyota, Trojans, University of Southern California
Bill Lumbergh, American Hero, by SirWilly77
As yet another Cool Rules Pronto public service, I’ve identified a few words and phrases that have been so overused, misused and abused that they no longer have any meaning. (Kind of like the joke in an average Saturday Night Live sketch.) These terms sound important without saying anything, which makes them ideal for press releases and political speeches… (more…)
Categories: Random Observations
Tagged: advertising, business, communications, jargon, language, marketing, PR, public relations, slang, terminology, words, writing
As you’ve probably heard to death by now, the hit film Tropic Thunder has stirred up a little hornet’s nest in politically correct circles. (I would say wasp’s nest, but the PC folks would probably object to offending White Anglo-Saxon Protestants. Those Saxons can be a gnarly bunch.) To promote Tropic Thunder, actor/writer/director Ben Stiller created a faux ad for a faux film, Simple Jack: “Once upon a time… there was a retard.”
Categories: Media News
Tagged: Ben Stiller, language, political correctness, Tropic Thunder, Urban Dictionary, words
"Common sense is the little man in a gray suit who never makes a mistake at addition, but it's always someone else's money he's adding up."
- Raymond ChandlerLet's hear it for uncommon sense: that inner itch that inspires you to stray from the herd, ditch the training wheels and leap into the fast lane. As we all know, it's the risk takers who get their faces on the cover of Wired magazine and their words on National Public Radio. No one ever remembers who won "honorable mention"...
Cool Rules Pronto celebrates uncommon sense in marketing and media. It's written by Freddy J. Nager, the Founder & Fusion Director of the L.A.-based marketing agency and production company Atomic Tango. For Cool Rules Pronto, he draws on two decades of experience in advertising and entertainment, including 15 years in new media. He has created campaigns and projects for agencies Saatchi & Saatchi and Magnet Interactive, and for such clients as Toyota, MCA Records, National Lampoon, Nissan & Infiniti, Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines, the NFL on Fox and numerous startups.
Freddy also serves on the Board of Directors of City Garage Theatre in Santa Monica, California. He holds a BA from Harvard University and an MBA from USC (go Trojans!), and currently teaches marketing through Antioch University L.A. and the University of Wales/Robert Kennedy College. He also wrote the satirical book, Claw Your Way To The Top: Ten Things I Learned About Business From My Cat, which he'll get around to marketing someday.
