"atmospheric," n.

Joel S. Berson Berson at ATT.NET
Mon Jun 28 16:02:16 UTC 2010 

At 6/28/2010 11:06 AM, Jonathan Lighter wrote:
>Anything in politics is crucially important - at least in the version of
>politics retailed by top electronic-media pundojournalists.

And by commentators, not mere commenters.

joel

>It is crucially
>important because it just might be the straw in the wind leading straight
>to the explosive scoop, missed by everyone else, that wins a coveted
>Pulitzer for the pundo who first got wise.
>
>Another reason is that if J. Q. Viewer began to suspect that not everything
>on cable news is crucially important to that millimeter-wide edge that might
>spell the difference between survival and its opposite, he'd soon switch to
>the Cartoon Network.
>
>JL
>
>On Mon, Jun 28, 2010 at 10:40 AM, Dan Goncharoff <thegonch at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> > -----------------------
> > Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> > Poster:       Dan Goncharoff <thegonch at GMAIL.COM>
> > Subject:      Re: "atmospheric," n.
> >
> >
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >
> > Thanks for clearing up the context.
> >
> > I am still not sure whether anyone thinks this single poll is
> > "important", even if it is a "pretty good indicator", this far in
> > advance of the election. Just how important does an atmospheric have to
> > be to be "important"?
> >
> > DanG
> >
> > On 6/28/2010 9:14 AM, Jonathan Lighter wrote:
> > > ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> > -----------------------
> > > Sender:       American Dialect Society<ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> > > Poster:       Jonathan Lighter<wuxxmupp2000 at GMAIL.COM>
> >  > Subject:      Re: "atmospheric," n.
> > >
> >
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> > >
> > > Here's a presumably accurate transcript of the entire quote from Candy
> > > Crowley:
> > >
> > >
> >
> http://newamericatoday.com/na/2010/06/062710-cnn-state-of-the-union-transcript.html
> > >    :
> > >
> > > I know pollsters, and certainly we at CNN have always looked at the right
> > > track, wrong track poll, as a pretty good indicator of how an election is
> > > going to go. And here's the NBC/"Wall Street Journal" right track/wrong
> > > track. Right direction, 29 percent, wrong track, 62 percent. That's not
> > the
> > > best atmospheric for Democrats.
> > >
> > > JL
> > >
> > > On Sun, Jun 27, 2010 at 6:18 PM, Dan Goncharoff<thegonch at gmail.com>
> >  wrote:
> > >
> > >
> > >> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> > >> -----------------------
> > >> Sender:       American Dialect Society<ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> > >> Poster:       Dan Goncharoff<thegonch at GMAIL.COM>
> > >> Subject:      Re: "atmospheric," n.
> > >>
> > >>
> >
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> > >>
> > >> Am I right to assume that "...the single poll number is probably *not*
> > >> important by itself..." was intended?
> > >>
> > >> I like the word "atmospherics". It suggests the temporary and ethereal
> > >> character of many of the factors that create the political environment
> > >> at a point in time, while leaving the possibility that they can
> > >> contribute to a longer term political climate.
> > >>
> > >> DanG
> > >>
> > >> On 6/27/2010 5:10 PM, Dave Wilton wrote:
> > >>
> > >>> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> > >>>
> > >> -----------------------
> > >>
> > >>> Sender:       American Dialect Society<ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> > >>> Poster:       Dave Wilton<dave at WILTON.NET>
> > >>> Subject:      Re: "atmospheric," n.
> > >>>
> > >>>
> > >>
> >
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> > >>
> > >>> Normally you see it in the plural, "atmospherics." It is actually quite
> > >>> common in marketing and political circles, and I'm surprised that
> > >>> dictionaries haven't picked it up.
> > >>>
> > >>> Atmospherics are the general ambience, mood, and background that
> > >>>
> > >> influence
> > >>
> > >>> opinion. So Crowley is saying that the single poll number is probably
> > >>> important by itself, but it will be one of many factors contributing to
> > a
> > >>> negative opinion of the Democrats.
> > >>>
> > >>> See:
> > >>>
> > >>> "Atmospherics [...] elements of store's ambience, which can be studied
> > >>>
> > >> and
> > >>
> > >>> controlled by a retailer to influence  the consumer's buying mood."
> > >>> http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/atmospherics.html
> > >>>
> > >>> "I've always wanted to get a feel for the physical and psychic
> > landscape
> > >>>
> > >> of
> > >>
> > >>> the time [...] in other words, the "atmospherics" of a situation.
> > >>> http://www.jonhassell.com/atmosindex.html
> > >>>
> > >>> "Ads and Atmospherics. Outdoor campaigns are suddenly hip."
> > >>> http://www.inc.com/magazine/20070201/salesmarketing-advertising.html
> > >>>
> > >>>
> > >>>
> > >>>
> > >>> -----Original Message-----
> > >>> From: American Dialect Society [mailto:ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU] On
> > Behalf
> > >>>
> > >> Of
> > >>
> > >>> Douglas G. Wilson
> > >>> Sent: Sunday, June 27, 2010 10:09 AM
> > >>> To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
> > >>> Subject: Re: "atmospheric," n.
> > >>>
> > >>> Jonathan Lighter wrote:
> > >>>
> > >>>
> > >>>> ....
> > >>>> "An element in the climate of political opinion."
> > >>>>
> > >>>> CNN's Cindy Crowley this morning referred to a poll number that was
> > "not
> > >>>>
> > >>>>
> > >>> the
> > >>>
> > >>>
> > >>>> sort of atmospheric that Democrats like." (A close paraphrase.)
> > >>>>
> > >>>> Cf., of course, "statistic."
> > >>>>
> > >>>>
> > >>> --
> > >>>
> > >>> I suspect maybe "atmospheric" might be an error for "stratospheric
> > [poll
> > >>> number]" meaning "very high [poll number]".
> > >>>
> > >>> -- Doug Wilson
> > >>>
> > >>> ------------------------------------------------------------
> > >>> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> > >>>
> > >>> ------------------------------------------------------------
> > >>> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> > >>>
> > >>>
> > >>>
> > >> ------------------------------------------------------------
> > >> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> > >>
> > >>
> > >
> > >
> > > --
> > > "If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the
> > truth."
> > >
> > > ------------------------------------------------------------
> > > The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> > >
> > >
> >
> > ------------------------------------------------------------
> > The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> >
>
>
>
>--
>"If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the truth."
>
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