WWHS ALUMNI PAGE
George Arnold ('58)
GEORGE T. ARNOLD. PH.D.
This article appeared in the Summer 2003 Marshall magazine.
By KIMBERLY CARICO SIMPSON
Want to know the difference between persuade and convince? Avoid and prevent? Do you assume there are no differences between the words? Actually, in this case, one would presume rather than assume.
It's distinctions like these as well as a seemingly supernatural mastery of grammar, punctuation and journalistic writing style that have given George T. Arnold, Ph.D., the affectionate title of "Grammar Czar" by his students.
Arnold, professor of journalism in the W. Page Pitt School of Journalism and Mass Communications at Marshall University, is the author of Media Writer's Handbook: A Guide to Common Writing and Editing Problems, which was first published in 1996. The book is now published by McGraw-Hill and is in its third edition. Before publication, Arnold's students used a locally bound version of the book for several years.
The book, which teaches the fundamentals of journalistic writing, is now used in about 80 colleges and universities nationwide.
"It's really more of a resource book than it is a textbook," Arnold said. "But I've designed it so it can be used both ways."
Schools such as the University of North Carolina, University of Oklahoma, University of Southern California and University of Tennessee are just a few that are using the book.
"One of the things I'm most pleased about is that the book is a required purchase for all students in the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism," Arnold said.
Journalism school alumni and graduating students often take their writer's handbooks with them into the professional newsroom.
"I put in the book the things that I have found over all these years that student journalists and professional journalists need at their fingertips," Arnold said. "Our language is so complicated and contradictory that it's really hard for people who aren't scholars of the language to hold it all in their heads."
When Arnold began teaching at Marshall University in 1968, he meticulously graded the grammar on students' papers, noticing that the same mistakes were being repeated.
"You can't put a comma after an introductory dependent clause if you don't know what the heck a dependent clause is," Arnold said. He set out to help students master the language.
"In mass communication, we all work under deadline pressure," Arnold said. "Whether you have five minutes or 10 minutes or half an hour, do you want to spend that precious time trying to determine whether you need a comma or semicolon, or do you want to know that so well that you can spend those precious moments on the message? Of course, the answer is clear."
Arnold continues collecting information for future editions of his book.
A common thread connects all four of the professors despite their vastly different books. Drs. Sikula, Hood, Walden and Arnold all share the love of teaching students in the classroom. By publishing their works, they've taken their expertise and creativity beyond the classroom walls. The professors are now sharing their knowledge and talent with another group of people who want to learn - their readers.
From the Marshall University website, June 2003:Dr. George Arnold, whose hometown is Beckley, WV, has taught language skills, mass media law and a variety of newspaper writing, reporting and editing classes at Marshall University since 1968.
He graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School in Beckley, Beckley College, Marshall University and Ohio University. He has almost 10 years of experience as a professional journalist in southern West Virginia and taught at the high school level for three years in Raleigh County.
Dr. Arnold is the first recipient of Marshall University's Marshall and Shirley Reynolds Outstanding Teacher Award (1987) and was the featured speaker at the university's 150th commencement that year. He was selected in 1994 as runner-up for the state's Professor of the Year by the Faculty Merit Foundation of West Virginia, Inc.
A member of the W. Page Pitt School of Journalism Hall of Fame, Dr. Arnold also has been selected for the Woodrow Wilson High School Golden Eagle Hall of Fame, and the West Virginia University High School Journalism Teachers Hall of Fame. In 1990, he and Dr. Ralph Turner of the Marshall journalism faculty were named the nation's Outstanding Campus Chapter advisers by the Society of Professional Journalists.
Dr. Arnold has written a language skills textbook, Media Writer's Handbook, whose second edition has been adopted by more than 80 colleges and universities.