Book publishing Quote by Harold Evans
““The grossest offenders are in the field of, in connection with, in order to, in respect of, so far as… is concerned. All sorts of things are found flourishing in the field of: in the field of public relations, in the field of breakfast cereals, in the field of book publishing, in the field of railway management, in the field of nuts and bolts, in the field of space exploration. There is no room left on the continent for fields that grow plants. All these in the field land-grabbers should be evicted. Field has a very proper association with battle, chivalry, and war (hence “Never in the field of human conflict”), but the phrase is rarely relevant or necessary.””
About This Quote
Source Speech: Broadcast interview, 1990s
Critiques the overuse of the phrase “in the field of” as a vague filler across many sectors, urging focus on substantive work.
In simple terms: Overused buzzwords dilute meaning.
Key Takeaway
Avoid vague jargon.
Themes
communication
clarity
critique
Mood
critical
analytical
Type
observational
critical
When to use this quote
- corporate reports
- academic papers
- media commentary
- policy documents
Key Concepts
semantic dilution
overgeneralization
Questions to Reflect On
- How does language shape perception of importance?
- When is broad categorization useful?
A Different Perspective
May overlook legitimate interdisciplinary work.
![“[W] are belatedly realizing that the ill-treatment of the environment is damage to ourselves - for the simple reason that the subject and object cannot be separated, and that we and our surroundings are the process of a unified field[.]” quote by Alan W. Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/737/alan-w-watts-9497_environment_w-are-belatedly-realizing-that-the-ill-t_2508767.jpg)
![“[The web] is going to end up being a tremendous advantage, providing we can work out the financial structure. I think we’ll see newspapers survive, being printed at home... Or you’ll have a local print shop, so that rather than waiting for the newspapers to arrive by truck, which is 30 percent at…” quote by Harold Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/473/harold-evans-15687_advantage_the-web-is-going-to-end-up-being-a-treme_47749.jpg)
![“If I want to spend the rest of my life reading one day's output of information, which is about what it would take, OK fine. But I personally prefer calibration from an aggregator or newspaper, where the No. 1 story is one they consider important, [and] they're usually right.” quote by Harold Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/17f/harold-evans-15687_calibration_if-i-want-to-spend-the-rest-of-my-life-r_193195.jpg)
