For citizens, a visit to your website might be the only interaction they ever have with your agency. A bad experience on even one government website is a poor reflection on all of us. Is your website showing your agency, and the government, at its best? Writing content in plain language is the most importantRead… Read more »
Search Results for: plain language
Plain Language Anyone?
How much attention do the various nooks and crannies within our sprawling organism called “government” pay to writing, speaking, posting, or tweeting in plain language? During the interviews that resulted in my becoming a technical writer/editor with ATF, one hiring decision maker stressed that one of my tasks would be to “show [the department] howRead… Read more »
Plain Language Awards
The Center for Plain Language, a 501(c)(3) with headquarters in the DC area, is giving awards for the best plain language documents and websites at a ceremony at the National Press Club on April 29. They’ve just extended their entry deadline to March 1. Entries are free this year. They’ll be giving ClearMark awards inRead… Read more »
Plain Language: the Key to Serving Citizens
I was an English major in college. My mom was an English teacher. All my life, I’ve valued words; and I always have believed that you communicate only when you choose the right words and put them in the right order. So from the day I became HUD’s web manager, my number one personal goalRead… Read more »
Much government web content is written in “governmentese” instead of plain language, says a white paper of Federal Web Managers Council
Much government web content is written in “governmentese” instead of plain language, says a white paper* developed by the Federal Web Managers Council, comprised of Cabinet agency Web Directors. The paper suggests (i) Establish Web Communications as a core government business function, (ii) Help the public complete common government tasks efficiently, (iii) Clean up theRead… Read more »
A Quick Tour of PlainLanguage.Gov
In this post, I hope to acclimate you to a few of the resources that are housed at PlainLanguage.gov so that you will learn to integrate the guidance into your own work as well as to navigate the site on your own.
Update on Research on www.plainlanguage.gov
Thanks to all of you who provided support for our research for www.plainlanguage.gov. We are trying to understand as closely as possible what Government thinkers need to know (about plain language and clear writing legislation. Here’s the background/reason for our research n 2006, my students reshaped the site www.plainlanguage.gov. Our purpose at that time wasRead… Read more »
Creating Trust and Inclusion at Your Agency: NextGen Speakers Explain How
Expert speakers at the recent NextGen virtual training summit busted myths and broke down ways to create trust, inclusion and transparency in the workplace. Here is their advice.
Clearing Things Up: Plain Writing Act Guidelines
Let’s look at a few Plain Writing Act guidelines to consider as you produce your agency’s content. Your readers are counting on you.
IT Basics for Government: Tech Jargon in Plain English
What you need to know to simplify tech jargon.