23.3.06 The sixth letter of the alphabet
I’ve spent the last couple of days looking over the next Lucire, and pondered whether to let the f word go through uncensored. It’s in an excellent by Fiona Ralph about fashion label Wheels & Dollbaby. In the context, it is appropriate, and it was a direct quotation within another direct quotation—but eventually I stuck with (our) tradition and replaced the uck with asterisks. Perhaps the act of doing so can be called uckstarring.
It’s my magazine; it has to reflect my values, and I generally don’t cuss. There are some people I want to get aggro about, and yes, I have used the word, but only in extreme circumstances. If I used it all the time, I would lose a good word for exclamation (how does Samuel L. Jackson cope with those snakes on that motherf***ing plane? Shall we invent a more serious word—like snicklebock—and position it as even more coarse?). My decision may look quaint today, and may look even more quaint in ten years’ time. But one rule of founder-run businesses is true: they retain the personality of that founder. Further, Lucire is a brand that has a decency about it, and if the f word is not good enough for network television here before 9 p.m., then I don’t want the censor—who actually taught my first class in law school—breathing down my neck. I would prefer the magazine to be dignified, even if all its other dealings are transparent, honest and reflective of the world we live in. It tries to be productive as a magazine, which is why we reach some passionate, globally minded consumers. It tries to reshape its world to how I would like to see it by being more positive and inspiring. Foul language just doesn’t seem to go with that brand. I leave the cursing to my competitors. (So, can you say the f word in Vogue?) Posted by Jack Yan, 08:54 Comments:
My Mum would say that substituting is as the same as saying the term, scolding me whenever I said "Fricking, Freakin', Fetchin'" and sometimes even "Fffffffffar out!"
People are gonna think the word when f**k or **** is read, so you'd probably have to omit the whole quote to change the world. ;). However, from a "branding" perspective, the stars are the way to go. People might not notice omittence, but stars will say so much more about the personality Lucire than f**k. # posted by Dan Gordon: 3/23/2006 10:47:00 AM
Thanks, Dan. It’s good to have your perspective as you are definitely hipper than me. It’s at the printer now, so I guess we really are dancing with the stars. Crap, did I just write that? Sorry … didn’t mean to swear just then …
Thanks, Sy! I guess you’ve heard about the usage of bloody in an ad for Australia, shown in the UK. The Brits found it objectionable due to the different use of the word there.
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