Shot in the foot by a loaded word

        Please read the following and consider your reaction:

        "Perryman admitted, however, that future periods of rapid and slow development are almost certain depending on circumstances as diverse as technological developments, natural gas prices, geology and demand for natural gas."

        What went through your mind regarding Perryman? If you thought Perryman was coming clean about a truth he had obscured deliberately, join the club.

        The sentence's use of "admitted" conjures that sort of reader reaction. No? Yes?

        Such is the power of "loaded" words -- usages that project all sorts of judgment, misperception and other problems. As noted in an earlier post on this blog, every effort should be taken by writers and editors to avoid loaded words and the inaccurate, credibility-damaging problems they cause for everyone concerned -- readers, writers, editors, sources and posterity, which is stuck forever with a warped piece of archived content. If used deliberately, loaded words constitute a tool of unethical practice known as lying.

        Fact is, (Ray) Perryman, a world-class economist, wasn't "admitting" anything even though an area newspaper published a story saying so. He was discussing an issue regarding the outlook for natural gas and the energy market. A fair, accurate and balanced verb would have corrected the situation by simply using "said."

        Admittedly, "admitted" carries color and force, two characteristics of marvelously readable copy. But in this instance, it's a loaded word that shoots credibility in the foot.