Jim Baumann

Chicago

Vice President and Executive Editor at Daily Herald

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Articles

Reflections on a career in news

May 12, 2024 | dailyherald.com | Jim Baumann

Jim Baumann My first story for the Daily Herald was not actually for the Daily Herald but for the still-weekly Herald newspaper group Paddock Publications owned in Lake County. It was a story about a terrible movie, “The Lost Honor of Kathryn Beck,” which was shot during the summer of 1983 in Mettawa. I neither drove to Mettawa to see the production nor interviewed any of the actors. Hard to tell whether the movie or my story about the movie was thinner on quality and impact.
Grammar Moses: So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, good night

Apr 27, 2024 | dailyherald.com | Jim Baumann

Stick a fork in me, dear readers. I’m done. Parting is such sweet sorrow, but after a decade of writing this column and four times as long (not four times longer) employed by the Daily Herald, I have decided to hand in my press pass, hang up my spurs and, well, retire. This is my final column. Retirement is bittersweet for me. I will miss the amazing people I work with, and I’ll also miss all of you who faithfully read these Sunday scribblings.
Grammar Moses: To whom it may concern

Apr 20, 2024 | dailyherald.com | Jim Baumann

I remember as if it were yesterday the last email I received from Ted “Dictionary Man” Utchen in the spring of 2021 shortly before he died. It was all about how people’s brains misfire when they think about whether to use “who” or “whom.” “Dear Mr. Grammarian: Today I write to you about the problem with 'who' and 'whom.' (It) is simply that people pay insufficient attention to how they are writing when they write. Or perhaps they flunked fifth-grade English, who knows?” he wrote.
Grammar Moses: The Situationship

Apr 13, 2024 | dailyherald.com | Jim Baumann

It’s spring, and love is in the air. But boy, has it gotten complicated. If I know my demographic, I’ll bet you haven’t heard of a “situationship” before. In the interest of helping you to better communicate with your grandchildren, here is something I picked up last weekend. My wife and I were having brunch with some friends of ours and their daughter, who attends Barrington High School.
Grammar Moses: My most iconic column to date

Apr 6, 2024 | dailyherald.com | Jim Baumann

Michael Jordan was an iconic basketball player. Michael Jackson was an iconic entertainer. Michael Phelps was an iconic swimmer. Michael was an iconic archangel. This is not about Michaels but icons. There just happens to be a lot of Michaels who fit the bill. But what is an icon, and what makes something iconic? It’s a little like pornography: you know it when you see it. Or at least you should.
Grammar Moses: Haben Sie Schokolade?

Apr 1, 2024 | dailyherald.com | Jim Baumann

I’m gearing up for a train journey through the Swiss Alps, and while my wife has done all of the planning, it is not a worry-free trip for me. First, the Alps are very tall. Second, trains hug the sides of mountains. Third, there are no guardrails. But perhaps the most daunting thing about traveling in Switzerland ― something I haven’t done since I was 18 ― is the language(s).
Grammar Moses: How many times does math go into journalism?

Mar 24, 2024 | dailyherald.com | Jim Baumann

If it’s your responsibility to vote, it’s ours to properly characterize the results. And that requires math. Daily Herald file photo A running gag in college was that one of my friends ― an education major ― had to take an elective in a realm in which he had no interest or acumen. He called the class Physics for Poets. I took English for Engineers. I don’t know a lot of journalists who have an extensive background in mathematics, as I do, but they’re out there.
What’s in name? Sometimes more than folks would like

Mar 17, 2024 | dailyherald.com | Jim Baumann

Casper “Cap” Menes Courtesy of Casper Menes No, I know what it’s like to be a rock star. Much like the call-and-response segment of any rock show, I asked last week for contributions from the audience and a chorus of you responded. The topic was people’s names and those names’ other uses. The attached photo of the man grinning ear to ear is ― you guessed it ― named Cap. His name is actually Capser, but everyone calls him “Cap” for short. It perfectly illustrates the exercise.
Grammar Moses: What’s in a name?

Mar 9, 2024 | dailyherald.com | Jim Baumann

Gib Van Dine often comes up with inspiration for these columns, but it’s ordinarily a germ of an idea. Today, I should share my byline with him. What I like about this one is the likelihood I’ll get some audience participation to prompt another column. Hey, I’m a busy guy, and I’ll take the help where I can get it. I encourage you to write to me with other examples, especially for your name. His idea: given names that can be used in other ways.
Grammar Moses: Contradicting myself

Mar 3, 2024 | dailyherald.com | Jim Baumann

Last week’s column looked at the emergence of “unthaw” as a synonym for “thaw” owing to misunderstanding the definition. “’Ravel’ and ‘unravel’ also mean the same thing,” wrote Anastasia Terovolas. “It’s enough to drive an English major to eat an entire bar of chocolate.” I’m not sure I need that level of aggravation to polish off an entire bar of chocolate, even if it’s one of those comically-large triangular prisms known as a Toblerone bar.