Ambiguity is a tricky thing. Sometimes it works for you and people read on, wanting to know exactly what you mean. Sometimes it works against you in that you create controversy where there is none.
Recently the media has made much “to do” about the Swine flu, and virtually no one agrees whether it’s the worst flu in the past hundred years or whether it’s the mildest flu in decades. If you read about the vaccine, you learn that it is either the salvation of the masses or another conspiracy to rob the populace of personal freedom.
N.C. among states ordering nasal H1N1 vaccine
Posted: Oct. 2, 2009
Updated: Oct. 2 7:04 p.m.
WASHINGTON — The long-awaited first vaccinations against swine flu – the squirt-in-the-nose kind – begin early next week in parts of the country, and states are urging people to be patient until more arrives.
North Carolina is among the first states placing orders.
To see the article, click here.
Once you read this article, identify the ambiguity in the headline. How could the writer have avoided it?
