Vanity Fair Copy Edits, Fact Checks Sarah Palin's Resignation Speech

vanityfair.com:

If you watched Sarah Palin's resignation speech, you know one thing: her high-priced speechwriters moved back to the Beltway long ago. Just how poorly constructed was the governor's holiday-weekend address? We asked V.F.'s red-pencil-wielding executive literary editor, Wayne Lawson, together with representatives from the research and copy departments, to whip it into publishable shape. Here is the colorful result.

Read the whole story: vanityfair.com

Comments

[ctman47]

Sarah in honor of our troops how about you stop making stuff up ~~

[jimbeaux1961]

11 Million dollar book deal; INCREDIBLE.

[Archivist1000]

It's shameful!

There are real writers out there, unable to get a book deal!

What does it say about the publishing industry, when they are confident there are enough barely literate people out there who will buy their FIRST EVER HARDCOVER BOOK! That's not to say that they will 'read' it, mind you... her supporters don't actually READ books!

[plzchuteme]

Not only real writers, but real writers with a real story to tell or real information to disseminate, and they can't get published to save their soul. It is shameful.

[NotStarvingArtist]

One can only hope that no one buys her book. She'll still get the 11 million dollars, but maybe the publisher will learn a useful lesson.

[TremoluxMan]

She makes herself such an easy target that it's gotten boring taking issue with anything she says. It's like shooting wolves from a helicopter.

[706makeupgirl]

Touche'!

[plzchuteme]

When we listen to people speak, or read what they write, we have a tendency to fill in the blanks and do automatic translations in our heads, leaving out all of the extraneous stuff, and disregarding the errors as long as we get the drift of what the person was trying to say. It is probably the hardest thing to do when learning a new language since we translate much more literally without the skills to smooth out the rough edges. It is only when we approach the written or spoken word literally, as one would having learned the language by the rules of grammar, definition, usage and style, etc., or to analyze and correct our speech using those same rules that we see what shape our language and communication skills are in. This exercise by the editors of, "Vanity Fair," should be sobering, and embarrassing to Sarah Palin. It was for me.

[airtyme]

Vanity Fair displays ignorance with latest attempt to smear Sarah Palin. I have to wonder…was the editor’s out to lunch when the article was approved to run in Vanity Fair? It’s that poorly fabricated. Here is the breakdown so you can see for yourself.

[e-mail]

[DixieMelody]

Speaking of ignorance. . .

"I have to wonder�was the editor"s out to lunch when the article was approved to run in Vanity Fair?

[Archivist1000]

airtyme: give it a rest, geez.

You really believe that a BLOG trumps VF? Conservative Momma is no match, but then, you wouldn't understand that would you?

I bet you have never read a whole VF story, because they are pages and pages and pages long! Stories in VF explore several ideas and require the reader to have good reading comprehension skills.

Stick with your blogs, they are simple little things that don't expect the reader to keep too many thoughts going at once. A few paragraphs and VOILA! you're done!

I would suggest that you TRY to read a VF story, but I doubt you could get through it OR follow it to the end.

[jimbeaux1961]

You write almost as badly as Palin speaks; think about changing you screen name to "airHEAD".

[HHUA]

"was the editor"s out to lunch"

I don't know about the editors (plural NO apostrophe or as you put it "quotation"), but obviously your reading and writing skills certainly ARE! No "wonder" you don't get this... The "ignorance" on display is your own!!!

Perhaps you should examine the VF article more closely, you might actually learn something.

[democracy7]

Her grasp of proper grammar is sadly lacking. All the colleges she attended, and the one that finally passed her should examine closely their policies regarding passing grades.
She had to have hired a ghost writer to help her write her papers is the only thing I can think of .

[Rogan]

It happens. My first several years of paying work as a writer, was other students' papers.

[Didactic Curveball]

This is what the Republican base relates to.

Well...duh­. Bush, Jr. was their kind of folk, too.

Ugh.

[tploomis]

it doesn't say much for the college that allowed her graduate with that level of writing incompetency. For that matter it doesn't say much for her high school English classes that she was able to pass them. Did anybody ever try to teach her? Did she trade other things for a passing grade? It was funny that she was expecting applause at the end of that fiasco!

[tploomis]

Oops! After proofreading my comment after being posted, I realized I need to revise it to say "allowed her to graduate."

[indy girl]

OMG--I thought it was bad when I heard it on tv the first time. Something is not right with this woman's thought process. If you read it slowly, it sounds schizo, and reminds me of the illogical, petulant rantings of a 7th grade cheerleader who didn't make the squad.

Did she attend even one entire English class in those 5 colleges, or did she drop out of each right before the class on sentence fragments? I wouldn't have been allowed to graduate from high school if I had had her sh!tty English skills.

I'm not even IN Alaska, but we're having a party the day she leaves office to celebrate. I hope she follows the happy trail of Georgie Boy, the last major 5-watt political bulb. Her "legacy" deserves to be as trivial as his.

[706makeupgirl]

LOL! That Boo Hoo picture is hilarious!

[hoobit]

Here's a transcription of a(nother) word salad 'response' tossed out by SP. (Dennis Zaki uploaded this vid of SP - made when she got back to AK after 4 Nov: here: http://vimeo.com/5649529 )

`````
REPORTER: Since you’ve been gone, the political landscape here in Alaska has changed quite a bit – there’s been some hurt feelings since you left, but especially in the legislature. How’re you gonna work to mend that and get back to the bi-partisan, ah, [unintelligible; cut off/over-voiced by SPs response].

SARAH PALIN: Well, I don’t know what specifically you’re talking about “hurt feelings”, then, because that’s so subjective. Kinda tough to answer, but, um, as I have for the last couple’a years, worked in a bi-partisan manner and in my administration, of course, that being made manifest by appointing Republicans, Democrats, and Independents to help serve the, the people of Alaska. I’m gonna continue to do that; continuing to reach out. Nobody should have hurt feelings. My goodness, this is POLitics. POLItics is rough and tumble and people need to get thick skin. Just like I’ve got.
`````
Say what? What did she say?

*Hearing* her is bad enough; *reading* her is downright painful!

[MadCroation]

That's harder to read than it was to listen to!

[hilaritee]

as a teacher, the sight of all of those edits (and the thought of having to do them) actually makes my blood pressure go up!! terrifying.

[wagthedog1001]

I didn't never have to necessarily write and scribble so many extraneous redundancies in any, above all, most or perhaps, when I think of it, all of the 8th grade papers and themes and such that I had to correct and edit or change.

[hoobit]

LOL! Big time!

[an aside: doesn't the above pic of SP look like Carla Bruni? [Sorry, Ms Bruni...]]

[cutesky]

Palin is the "Imbecilla from Wasilla".

[airtyme]

Vanity Fair has openly shown their ignorance with this piece, as have some of their subscribers. Don't take my word for it, read for yourself. Seems like the editors were out to lunch when this was published.

http://1conservativemomma.wordpress.com/2009/07/21/vanity-fair-edits-sarah-palins-resignation-speech/

[Archivist1000]

re: airtyme http://1conservativemomma.wordpress.com/2009/07/21/vanity-fair-edits-sarah-palins-resignation-speech/

AWWWW poor Conservative Momma ... she just doesn't GET IT does she? Off on a rant totally missing the point ... it's too funny, really, when the Palinbots get riled up and start spouting nonsense, just like, just like ... hmmmmm just like PALIN ... no wonder they admire her, they can't see how dumb she is; she makes them feel 'smart' dontcha know!


So airtyme, you really think we are going to be convinced by a blog written by Conservative Momma (good grief!) that the editors of VF are 'out to lunch' ... Really???

ROFLMAO

[miatamama]

Wrong. Conservativemomma shouldn't quit her day job. Perhaps a copy of "The Elements of Style" should be in her lunchbox. The arguments presented show only surface reasoning and a lack of proper editing and composition knowledge. Dang, writin's hard!

[aixpat]

Herein lies the difference: This blogger is not writing, she's "rambling":

Her words (subtitle): "The ramblings of a Christian conservative mom, trying to make sure there is an America left for her future grandchild­ren."

This may well be the defining difference for Palin.

(We can only hope that the future grandchildren of these ramblers will be literate.)

[706makeupgirl]

Are you still banging that drum?
Oh I see that you revised you sentence structure to the corrected version.
Sad.
No one wants to read your gobble-de-goop blog.
Go take care of your kids Conservative Momma.

[JolieN]

Oh come on, give her a break, it's only her fourth draft

[munki]

4th? thought was 5th... self incriminat­ion... :{