Text Messaging

Clearly there is a significant divide in the opinions regarding text messaging, or ‘text speak’. In the first article, John Humphreys takes a very strong stance on the subject, claiming that texters are

“Destroying it [English language]: pillaging our punctuation; savaging our sentences; raping our vocabulary. And they must be stopped." 

He also expresses much discontent with the OED’s decision to remove the hyphen from their latest edition. In the second article, John Sutherlands review of the text message phenomenon appears much more analytic than opinionated, and the third article attempts to refute John’s claims with statistical evidence.

Before I had even read the third article I already disagreed with John’s views, but it does a pretty good job of reinforcing my initial thoughts. To summarise John’s article; he believes and states quite strongly that the English language is being destroyed by those who have embraced text messaging. He also believes, wrongly, that the main opposition to this opinion is the view that:

“...language changes.

It is constantly evolving and anyone who tries to get in the way is a fuddy-duddy who deserves to be run down.”

I disagree with John’s argument not for this reason but because I feel he has misjudged the impact that text messaging has and will have, which is;

“Our written language may end up as a series of ridiculous emoticons and ever-changing abbreviations.”

I fail to see where he has drawn this conclusion from. Text messaging has been widespread as far back as the late 90s, and has had little or no effect on the language I read away from my mobile. Every other form of written communication that I read is still using proper English; newspapers, magazines, books, textbooks, blog posts, any successful website. I have been texting for around 10 years and have never caught myself slipping a ‘U’ or a ‘LOL’ into any form of written communication away from my mobile. Even when I am using text messaging, I rarely abbreviate or shorten words and take care to use correct punctuation, as do most of my friends. Perhaps it is just my social circle, but I do not know anywhere where text-speak is acceptable apart from when texting. 

Text messaging is designed to be short and precise, to be used when you are too busy to write a letter or make a phone call – it is an alternative to ‘proper’ communication, not a replacement. Perhaps when it becomes acceptable to use text speak in exams and newspaper headlines, John’s argument will be warranted. Until then, he is making a mountain of a mole hill.