And now, it’s time for another installment of Bad Copywriting. This time around, the booby prize goes to Limited Too.

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Unfortunately, we have another entry for our “bad copywriting” thread. This one is from Virgin Mobile and McKinney + Silver, Durham, NC (thanks to Tim Nunn of AdFreak). Read more

Memo to election officials across the US: Please let online copywriters and designers create a simple to use, friction-free electronic ballot.

We got to thinking about this because, once again, Florida is in the news for bungling an election. Read more

Why is Microsoft Word’s built-in dictionary so lame? Everybody has known this for years and remarks about it anecdotally. Read more

T. Keung Hui writes in the N&O Blogs about “Intersessing at year-rounds.”

Sorry, T. No such word. There is no gerund form of “intersession,” a noun meaning “the time between two academic sessions or semesters.”

On the positive side, this story generated active debate with 36 posts in just 5 hours. On the negative side, the mistaken usage in the headline lead to further confusion in the comments. One blogger asked “WHERE will these intercessions be held?” That’s a different word meaning “pleading on behalf of another.”

Here at Online Copywriter, we’re as willing to make up words as anyone else. Just this week, we wrote with joy about “astroturfing.”

But “intersessing?” No. That’s just ugly.

The N&O needs to set some minimum standards for online writing by it’s staff. Start with “use real words.”

Oy vay.

Heard this on TV this morning at the gym:

“Cingular is now the new AT&T”

I had my back to the TV and thought to myself “what does that mean? Which brand died?”

It reminds me of the evergreen pitch from the fashionistas:

“Brown is the new black.”

Every season, a new variation on the same tired admonition: “gray is the new black,” “green is the new black,” “blue is the new black.” Translation:

Brown has replaced black.

So if Cingular is now the new AT&T, has Cingular replaced AT&T?

Au contraire. AT&T has replaced Cingular.

How can such a big company full of smart people make such a silly mistake? Answer: navel gazing. We’re guessing the original line was “Cingular is now AT&T.” Simple, functional, communicative.

But then some genius said “add the word new, Bob. We want people to know we’re the new AT&T. Not that stodgy old company we used to be.”

So Cingular is now the new AT&T. Red is the new black. And we miss the old Ma Bell.