Andy Bechtel

Andy Bechtel

@andybechtel.bsky.social

Journalism professor at UNC-Chapel Hill. Copy editor. NOLA native, Durham denizen. Member of AAUP and ACES: the Society for Editing. https://editdesk.wordpress.com/

1.1K followers394 following629 posts

My first five ttrpgs in the order I played them: 1. D&D 2. Gamma World (sentimental favorite) 3. Star Frontiers 4. Rolemaster 5. Call of Cthulu

Jason Wilson@jasonbwilson.bsky.social

My first five ttrpgs in the order I played them: 1. D&D/AD&D 2. Palladium 3. Robotech 4. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 5. Star Wars (West End)

Andy Bechtel reposted

Maryland’s athletic department called the cops on two student-journalists trying to get comment from players about the Mike Locksley firing

Andy Bechtel reposted

I'm no campaign strategy expert, but it seems to me that you really ought to respond to the state's largest newspapers if you are serious about wanting public office. To fail to do this suggests you don't respect citizens' need to know about issues.

Andy Bechtel reposted

Religion News Service is running an annual community survey, to help us understand how well we’re reaching people who are—or could be—interested in our work. Whether you’ve never heard of us, love us, hate us, etc: we’d love your feedback. Take the survey here: www.surveymonkey.com/r/9K3P9VD.

surveymonkey.comReligion News Service (RNS) 2026 Community SurveyTake this survey powered by surveymonkey.com. Create your own surveys for free.

Andy Bechtel reposted

YES, IT'S HOTTER, IT'S MUGGIER, AND, YES, YOU'RE GOING CRAZY: NYT headline as it appeared in Spike Lee's “Do the Right Thing” (1989) next to actual placement of the (real!) 1988 article

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Andy Bechtel reposted

The sustainability of these sports betting companies is clearly evident by the number of ads they need to run hourly to feed the grift.

Andy Bechtel reposted

Fired UNC Civics Associate Dean Breaks His Silence on Investigation David Decosimo objected to a Wall Street Journal editorial about UNC-Chapel Hill’s embattled civics school. The paper didn’t publish his response—which he says is part of the problem.

theassemblync.comFired UNC Civics Associate Dean Breaks His Silence on InvestigationDavid Decosimo objected to a Wall Street Journal editorial. The paper didn’t publish his response—which he says is part of the problem.

Andy Bechtel reposted

lede = introductory section in journalism bury the lede = hiding the most relevant pieces of a story within other distracting information Allegedly, it’s spelled ‘lede’ to avoid confusion with ‘lead,’ which was the strip of metal that would separate lines of type.

Andy Bechtel reposted

I’m excited to officially announce our forthcoming book—and reveal the cover! "The Collaborative Editor: How to Build Trust with Writers Through Queries and Other Communications" is cowritten with Lourdes Venard (Spring 2027, Chicago Press). Pre-order now! press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/bo...

press.uchicago.eduThe Collaborative EditorDiscover the techniques and tools for building a successful editor-writer relationship.Becoming an effective editor involves not only working proficiently with words but also learning to forge success...

Andy Bechtel reposted

Have you ever tried to read a scientific journal article and been told “you don’t have access, pay to download this article?” Did you know that the author of that article gets $0 if you pay? Instead, you can email the author and ask for a free copy! I’d be delighted to help and answer questions!

It's odd how my university regularly blasts "alert" messages about thunderstorms. But there were no warnings issued when a man entered a campus building, threatened a gathering of Black students, and fled.

Andy Bechtel reposted

Editing is about much more than just grammar and punctuation. The real value the human insight of editing brings is in how well content is organized and how engaging, understandable, and usable it is for its audience. A new study from @acesediting.bsky.social shows: aceseditors.org/about-aces/v...

aceseditors.orgValue of Editing ResearchValue of Editing Research Home » About ACES » Value of Editing Research See the impact of better editing The ACES Value of Editing Report examines how different levels of editing shape the reader expe...

Andy Bechtel reposted

In an era where digital campaign advertising is everywhere, mimicking an old-school print newspaper is an interesting way to stand out. WUNC's Colin Campbell looks into political campaign ads that are posing as local news outlets. www.wunc.org/politics/202...

wunc.orgAmid Senate race, partisan groups mimic news outletsA newspaper I’d never heard of landed in my home mailbox recently. Titled “The North Carolina Independent,” it included a crossword puzzle and some other features of a typical print publication.

Andy Bechtel reposted

Best plural forms ranked: 1) internal (tours de force, culs-de-sac) 2) ending in -i (magi) 3) is to es (oases) 4) suppletive (people) 5) vowel changes (geese) 6) f to ves (thieves) 7) adding en (oxen) 8) no change (moose) 9) adding es, ies (boxes, babies) 10) adding s

Andy Bechtel reposted

Shameful. The communities these news organizations serve deserve to know what's happening.

Nicole Foy@nicolefoy.bsky.social

McClatchy, controlled by a hedge fund, doesn't want you to talk about all the journalists they're laying off today around the country!

Andy Bechtel reposted

Spent half the day at the National Academy of Sciences on whose building sits this quote I’d never read before. It seems arrestingly fitting, across the board, for the times we’re in. For all time, actually, which is of course the point. But still: oof.

Andy Bechtel reposted

New by me—> Trump wants the media to call Lake Ontario "Lake America." But it hasn't worked with the "Gulf of America." U.S. news outlets — even the ones that Republicans prefer — have been steadily increasing their preference for "Gulf of Mexico." www.niemanlab.org/2026/09/trum...

Andy Bechtel reposted

The word “y’all” is the South’s gift to the English speaking world. A warm, genderless, elegant solution to the language’s odd lack of a formal contraction for “you all”. You can use it. Really, we don’t care.

Andy Bechtel reposted

Seriously y'all can we just quit with the robot-writing? As a journal editor, you're taking *so much of the joy* out of reading human science. You've smoothed it out into a series of banal and often inaccurate claims. So rarely do I read a paper with AI content that is very good, in any event. =/

Andy Bechtel reposted

Dolly Parton is still giving back even after she's gone. From her Instagram account a few mins ago: "In lieu of flowers the family asks for donations to be made to Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library at www.imaginationlibrary.com." 😭💔

imaginationlibrary.comDolly Parton's Imagination Library | USA, UK, IE, CA, AUDolly Parton’s Imagination Library is a book gifting program that mails free books to children from birth until they begin school in participating areas.

Andy Bechtel reposted

BREAKING: It made the final cut. Congratulations, Michigan, you might have the best voting sticker of 2026.

Jen Rice@jenrice.bsky.social

I am obsessed with this finalist in this year's Michigan “I voted” sticker design contest

Andy Bechtel reposted

A cool thing about AI is how it has completely flattened all individual cultural expression so I can see exactly the same ugly sign in Rio de Janeiro as I would see in Dublin