May I have a word? Lynchpin
A "linchpin" (sometimes "lynchpin") is a pin inserted through an axle to hold a wheel on. It's used as a synonym for anchor, keystone, a central source of support. Carolyn Barta of Dallas Blog reports that the Clinton campaign considers Texas a "linchpin" in her campaign. That's the spelling in the AP story she quotes from. But in her own headline, she spells it "lynchpin." That's an alternative, though less common, spelling, so no big deal, right? Except for two things: one, Clinton's opponent is an African-American, and two, "lynch" has a totally different meaning regarding race relations. Careless use of the word "lynch" earned a television personality a week's suspension. I'm confident Barta didn't have that in mind, but you'd think a professional journalist might have noticed and not changed the spelling of "linchpin" to "lynchpin."
No comments:
Post a Comment