Re: STC Letter to the Editor
Chambliss comments on an editorial that draws parallels between judging the quality of technical comm products and - of all things - Olympic figure skating.
I haven't read the comment, nor am I likely to, since I'm not an STC member. However, to judge from your summary, the letter has a point.
Technical aspects to both writing and design that can be judged more or less objectively on how well they are executed. However, very few judging committees of any sort can stay with this criterion for any length of time. Inevitably, they start comparing not on execution, but on personal or fashionable preferences.
Even worse, they start to make decisions on personal considerations, rather than merit. To some extent, blind judging can eliminate this tendency. However, in the world of tech-writing, anyone experienced enough to be a judge would probably also have the connections to know which company and which writers were responsible for any local entries.
In general, I consider prizes of these sorts - whether they're local STC competitions or the Booker Prize - to be exercises in PR and chances to bestow favors.
There are exceptions, of course. For example, until about 1980, the Nebula Award, voted on by members of the Science Fiction Writers of America while far from perfect, genuinely did seem based on merit. Any award can go through such a period when it is conscientiously given. However, such periods don't usually last, so in general awards don't mean much.
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References:
STC Letter to the Editor: From: Blount, Patricia
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