How do social media algorithms shape the way we communicate? A new book argues that the competition for clicks is changing the way we speak and write, from the so-called “YouTube accent” to the surprising evolution of the word preppy. Also: A...
Meg in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, gets why the state highway department encourages drivers to use their blinkers when changing lanes, but placing a digital sign at the Sagamore Bridge that reads Use Ya Blinkah is, well, a lexical bridge too far. Meg’s...
John in Mysterious Waters, Florida, wonders whether it’s socially acceptable to misspell words on purpose on social media so they look more like the way he talks. Spellings such as mah for my, dawg for dog, and aight for all right can work as eye...