Punctuation is important. I think most people would agree with me on this statement. Well, Cormac McCarthy might not. I just finished Part I of The Crossing for my Honors World Literature class. He is opposed to comma usage, so the only punctuation you get is . ” ” ? ! Makes it a little challenging 
However, we did an activity yesterday in Intro. to PR that affirmed to me the importance of proper punctuation that has been embedded in my mind by years of school. Below is the activity we did in class provided by my professor, Barbara Nixon: two versions of the same document, with the only difference being punctuation and capitalization.
Dear Tom, I want a man who knows what love is all about. You are generous, kind, thoughtful. People who are not like you admit to being useless and inferior. You have ruined me for other men. I yearn for you. I have no feelings whatsoever when we’re apart. I can be forever happy. Will you let me be yours? Sheila.
Dear Tom, I want a man who knows what love is. All about you are generous, kind, thoughtful people who are not like you. Admit to being useless and inferior. You have ruined me. For other men, I yearn. For you, I have no feelings whatsoever. When we’re apart, I can be forever happy. Will you let me be? Yours, Sheila.
As you can see, there is quite a difference in the tone that is set with the two different versions. If the passage were read aloud, the meaning would be inferred by intonations in the reader’s voice. However, since PR involves a lot of writing that must present precise ideas in a timely manner, correct punctuation is a critical skill for PR professionals, as well as many other professions.
Sometimes, despite the best efforts of well-intentioned professionals, misunderstandings do occur. Although the person who made the mistake probably does not find it humorous, it can be quite entertaining for the rest of us. Below is a YouTube video of some of the headlines shown by host Jay Leno in The Tonight Show’s regular segment: Headlines.
