Confusing headlines

[Zju]

Massey University fat studies academic Cat Pause dies suddenly.

[fusijui]

Massey University fat studies academic Cat Pause dies suddenly.

I think we have a winner. We can close this thread down now.

[hwhatting]

Yes, that's really a gem.

[bradrn]

And, to make it worse, it looks like her last name is really ‘Pausé’.

[Man in Space]

Courtesy of Ars Technica:

Fungus foils invading hordes of crazy ants, and that’s great for Texas

[bradrn]

Building boss Googled can ‘investigators trace deleted WhatsApp messages’

[Raphael]

Building boss Googled can ‘investigators trace deleted WhatsApp messages’

One quotation mark is one word too far to the right, but aside from that, I don't find it particularly confusing.

[Travis B.]

Building boss Googled can ‘investigators trace deleted WhatsApp messages’

One quotation mark is one word too far to the right, but aside from that, I don't find it particularly confusing.

Agreed.

[bradrn]

Building boss Googled can ‘investigators trace deleted WhatsApp messages’

One quotation mark is one word too far to the right, but aside from that, I don't find it particularly confusing.

Ah, but that's the thing, because the quotation marks actually are in the right position. ‘Can’ is not part of the quote.

[Raphael]

Ah, but that's the thing, because the quotation marks actually are in the right position. ‘Can’ is not part of the quote.

Huh? If that's really true, then I have no idea what the headline is supposed to mean.

[bradrn]

Ah, but that's the thing, because the quotation marks actually are in the right position. ‘Can’ is not part of the quote.

Huh? If that's really true, then I have no idea what the headline is supposed to mean.

First sentence:

A construction boss had screenshots on his phone showing a Google search that asked whether “investigators can trace deleted WhatsApp messages”, an Independent Commission Against Corruption inquiry has heard.

So ‘can’ is part of the quote, but not in that position. Better would have been something like Building boss Googled if ‘investigators can trace deleted WhatsApp messages’.

[Raphael]

First sentence:

A construction boss had screenshots on his phone showing a Google search that asked whether “investigators can trace deleted WhatsApp messages”, an Independent Commission Against Corruption inquiry has heard.

So ‘can’ is part of the quote, but not in that position. Better would have been something like Building boss Googled if ‘investigators can trace deleted WhatsApp messages’.

Ah, thank you. I completely agree with your proposed alternative.

[Travis B.]

First sentence:

A construction boss had screenshots on his phone showing a Google search that asked whether “investigators can trace deleted WhatsApp messages”, an Independent Commission Against Corruption inquiry has heard.

So ‘can’ is part of the quote, but not in that position. Better would have been something like Building boss Googled if ‘investigators can trace deleted WhatsApp messages’.

Ah, thank you. I completely agree with your proposed alternative.

That's a better wording, and that's how I interpreted it originally (with the moved quotation mark).

[bradrn]

From a live blog, but a headline nonetheless:

Dirty tricks aimed at teals focus of electoral integrity taskforce

[Raphael]

So the teals were running in the election, and their opponents used or tried to use dirty tricks against them, and now the electoral integrity taskforce is on the case?

[bradrn]

So the teals were running in the election, and their opponents used or tried to use dirty tricks against them, and now the electoral integrity taskforce is on the case?

Yes, exactly. But it took me a while to get there.

[Raphael]

So the teals were running in the election, and their opponents used or tried to use dirty tricks against them, and now the electoral integrity taskforce is on the case?

Yes, exactly. But it took me a while to get there.

Well, now I'm completely bewildered. You see, I had to look up "teals", and judging from the results of quick web searches, it seems to mean certain types of ducks. Were ducks running in an election?

[bradrn]

So the teals were running in the election, and their opponents used or tried to use dirty tricks against them, and now the electoral integrity taskforce is on the case?

Yes, exactly. But it took me a while to get there.

Well, now I'm completely bewildered. You see, I had to look up "teals", and judging from the results of quick web searches, it seems to mean certain types of ducks. Were ducks running in an election?

Huh, so it is a type of duck. I never knew that. In this context, however, it’s just a bit of Australian electoral jargon: numerous more-or-less-affiliated independent candidates are running in the current election, and due to the colour of their campaign posters, they have become known as the ‘teal independents’, or just ‘teals’ for short.

[Raphael]

Ah, thank you!

[Raphael]

From the Chicago Sun-Times:

Metra trains on BNSF line not stopping at Clarendon Hills day after collision with semi killed a passenger


Took me a moment to parse that.