Language in the News Archives — Planet Word Museum The museum where language comes to life Tue, 03 Feb 2026 22:47:24 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://planetwordmuseum.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/cropped-PW_Logo_BLUE_circle-2-1-32x32.png Language in the News Archives — Planet Word Museum 32 32 Language, Liberty & the Weight of America’s 250th Anniversary https://planetwordmuseum.org/from-the-founder-language-liberty-the-weight-of-americas-250th-anniversary/ Tue, 03 Feb 2026 22:47:24 +0000 https://planetwordmuseum.org/?p=10655 Shortly after Planet Word opened, I told our programming staff that we needed to begin thinking about how we would observe special, word-related occasions. Well, the biggest one of all…

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]]> On the Coarsening of Public Discourse https://planetwordmuseum.org/from-the-founder-on-the-coarsening-of-public-discourse/ Tue, 20 Jan 2026 20:39:40 +0000 https://planetwordmuseum.org/?p=10608 I spent a couple weeks trying to draft one of my Messages from the Founder about students not reading whole texts in school (or out of school for that matter)…

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]]> The State of Literacy in the Digital Age https://planetwordmuseum.org/the-state-of-literacy-in-the-digital-age/ Mon, 13 Oct 2025 20:55:50 +0000 https://planetwordmuseum.org/?p=10401 Five years ago, Planet Word opened its doors with a bold mission: to spark a love of words, language, and reading in people of all ages — at a time…

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]]> Writer’s Block https://planetwordmuseum.org/from-the-founder-writers-block/ Mon, 22 Sep 2025 20:34:17 +0000 https://planetwordmuseum.org/?p=10321 Wasn’t it fortunate and timely, I thought, that just when words started to be the news — as opposed to simply being used to record and report the news —…

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]]> English as Our Official Language — Symbolic or Significant?: Q&A with Dr. Bill Rivers https://planetwordmuseum.org/english-as-our-official-language-symbolic-or-significant-qa-with-dr-bill-rivers/ Tue, 11 Mar 2025 21:00:23 +0000 https://planetwordmuseum.org/?p=9655 On March 1, 2025, President Trump issued an executive order designating English — and only English — as the official language of the United States. The move has sparked both…

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]]> Words Under Threat https://planetwordmuseum.org/from-the-founder-words-under-threat/ Wed, 26 Feb 2025 22:56:22 +0000 https://planetwordmuseum.org/?p=9629 My instinctive reaction to the broad, undifferentiated cuts to federal departments and programs was skepticism and distress. Would the cuts affect the cleanliness of our air and water, the safety…

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