Nick Kristof has middle initials to spare!
The New York Times columnist has boldly decided to drop the middle initial from his byline in order to be more down with the common folks:
Kristof: "In the Internet age, the middle initial conveys a formality that is a bit of a barrier to our audience" http://t.co/loZCLbbifv
— Michael Calderone (@mlcalderone) January 2, 2014
Let’s let Kristof explain, shall we?
I think in the Internet age, the middle initial conveys a formality that is a bit of a barrier to our audience. It feels a bit ostentatious, even priggish. If my aim in my 20’s was gravitas, now I want to reach people and connect with them, and I wonder if the stuffiness of the middle initial isn’t a little off-putting. I doubt if it makes much difference, frankly, but at the margin I think that we’re moving to a kind of journalism that is more casual, more informal, more personal, and a very formal byline seems as out of place as a three-piece suit in the newsroom. Speaking of which, when I started at the Times in the business section in 1984, I wore a business suit and the middle initial was a nice accoutrement to pinstripes; now I wear an open collar, and I don’t need the middle initial any more than a necktie.
Oh, bra-vo!
.@NickKristof post on why he's dropping his middle initial on his byline is actually pretty interesting http://t.co/feHJytyLfX
— Adam Taylor (@mradamtaylor) January 2, 2014
That tiny, inconsequential change — Nick Kristof dropping the middle initial from his byline — is a sign of a big shift in journalism.
— Jay Rosen (@jayrosen_nyu) January 2, 2014
A big shift toward even more stupid, self-important dreck? Great. Looking forward to it!
Recommended
You bonkers? Or joking? RT @jayrosen_nyu: Tiny change — @NickKristof dropping middle initial from byline — is sign of shift in journalism.
— Mark Doyle (@Doylebytes) January 2, 2014
We’ve got an initial for Kristof: M. For mockery:
https://twitter.com/SciencePunk/statuses/418792539026489344
good grief. think this guy has more substantial barriers to his audience than a middle initial RT @SciencePunk http://t.co/M2Pi9dctKg …
— Hannah Devlin (@hannahdev) January 2, 2014
https://twitter.com/benhjacobs/status/418781960454955008
Nicholas Kristof's middle initial currently in Thailand freeing other middle initials who cannot free themselves.
— Jacob Bacharach (@jakebackpack) January 2, 2014
The explanation is actually more ostentatious than the initial. http://t.co/wSREbAyNLh
— Richard Callow (@publiceyestl) January 2, 2014
Nicholas Kristoff drops middle initial to appear less ' ostentatious, even priggish'. Fails miserably. http://t.co/kEzrpWDDKS
— Eric Larson (@larsoneric50) January 2, 2014
https://twitter.com/munilass/status/418792046896234496
Pleased to announce that I will be picking up Nicholas Kristof’s discarded middle initial. Will now be Charles C. W. D. Cooke.
— Charles C. W. Cooke (@charlescwcooke) January 2, 2014
@JillianPattrson @michellemalkin I am now W. James D. Antle III and I am going to start wearing two ties instead of one.
— Jim Antle (@jimantle) January 2, 2014
Had not noticed Nicholas Kristof's middle initial–or that it is missing. As some men complain no one notices they've shaved off a beard.
— Joyce Carol Oates (@JoyceCarolOates) January 2, 2014
https://twitter.com/dgardner/status/418748409299099648
@michellemalkin I cannot believe @NickKristof used 500 words to justify dropping middle initial. Posterchild for narcissism.
— Gerard S Harbison (@GerardHarbison) January 2, 2014
https://twitter.com/JGreenDC/status/418813647486349312
https://twitter.com/texan767/status/418811788898361344
is soliciting recommendations for a middle name so that I can self-indulgently write about not using it. http://t.co/vhitlZ3t0K
— Pejman Yousefzadeh: Dominating Your Battlespace (@Yousefzadeh) January 2, 2014
It's a good thing he wrote this article, otherwise absolutely no one would have noticed. http://t.co/lpDaZQoYJx cc @michellemalkin
— Jordan Golson (@jlgolson) January 2, 2014
https://twitter.com/stevehavelka/status/418801719678496768
HAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHA ==> http://t.co/rf1JrpJy6K AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. #achingsides
— Michelle Malkin (@michellemalkin) January 2, 2014
Can't stop gigglesnorting. This priggish disavowal of priggishness is textbook definition of priggish. ==> http://t.co/b4ZqlS3W3p
— Michelle Malkin (@michellemalkin) January 2, 2014
Next: @NickKristof announces he's replacing his name w/Homer Simpson emoticon to better connect with The People. http://t.co/b4ZqlS3W3p
— Michelle Malkin (@michellemalkin) January 2, 2014
Now @NickKristof needs to follow Ke$ha's path & replace "S" with "$." It'll make him more, you know, relatable. http://t.co/b4ZqlS3W3p
— Michelle Malkin (@michellemalkin) January 2, 2014
New Fishwrap of Record motto: All the news that's fit to print, with none of the priggish middle initials! http://t.co/b4ZqlS3W3p
— Michelle Malkin (@michellemalkin) January 2, 2014
The pretentiousness. The narcissism. The faux-humility and Kabuki engagement of Open-Collar Journalism. It burns. http://t.co/rf1JrpJy6K
— Michelle Malkin (@michellemalkin) January 2, 2014
It scorches.
https://twitter.com/CHBilhorn/status/418810713285488643
Oops.
If Nick wants to open his collar, that’s cool with us. But he might wanna think about shutting his mouth.
Who cares what's missing from @NickKristof 's byline? What's missing from his columns: the TRUTH. Flashback ==> http://t.co/zshvcsPBLt
— Michelle Malkin (@michellemalkin) January 2, 2014
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