Writers debate how to quote undereducated
Richard Prince / Maynard Institute
Mike Freeman, a columnist for CBSSports.com, had a question for fellow sportswriters in the National Association of Black Journalists.
“I’m in Philly at the NCAAs,” he wrote, speaking of the National Collegiate Athletic Association basketball tournament. “I was listening to the players from Chattanooga. Here is one quote:
“When we seen that we got UConn, I mean, we was happy to be up there on the board. Coming here, we believed we can be one of the teams in history, to make history and beat UConn. It’s all about believing in the system, believing in yourself. When you toss up that ball, anybody can win. Ain’t just ’cause they UConn it’s a lock. It’s a basketball game. Both teams we got to play, they just like us.
“We seen? We was happy?
“A couple of questions:
“1. This quote was distributed verbatim by ASAP Sports,” a transcription service. “Should it have been cleaned up by them?
“2. There are too many young brothers speaking this way publicly. What can anyone do about it?
