L to R: Vanderlei Martins, Christine Mallinson, and Dinah Winnick. Panel session on communicating about research to the media, as part of the “From Advancement Office to Advancement Community” plenary session at the 2018 UMBC university retreat. Photo credit: Marlayna Demond for UMBC.
Selected Media Appearances
February 2023 “17 Baltimore Slang Terms You Should Know”
Research by myself and my students about the pronunciation of “Baltimore,” the use of “hon,” and other topics related to language variation in Baltimore are included in this piece for Mental Floss.
September 2022 “Don’t Tell Me My Accent Doesn’t Exist”
In this piece for Salon, written by Baltimore author D Watkins, I explain why we have to bring language into conversations about DEI. In order to make our social domains, such as our workplaces and schools, a more inclusive place, we have to respect, value and incorporate linguistic diversity.
February 2022 “How Did the Baltimore Accent Happen?”
Trick question, there are many Baltimore accents! I weight in on the linguistic context for The Maryland Curiosity Bureau podcast for WYPR, hosted by Aaron Henkin.
October 2021 “A Patriarchal Tradition That Just Won’t Budge”
In this article in The Atlantic, I talk about our choice to give our children my last name within the sociolinguistic context of surnaming traditions in the U.S.
October 2021 “Why Your Family’s Secret Language is Good for Kids”
In this article in National Geographic Kids, I talk about how kids are naturally delighted with language, and how their creativity helps create their families’ unique lingo.
July 2021 “A Magical Realm of Crabs and Chickens”
In this article in Outside magazine, I discuss the sociolinguistic history of the Delmarva peninsula.
June 2021 “FAA Committee Recommends Shifting to Gender-Neutral Language”
In this article in the Washington Post, I weigh in on the FAA’s new recommendations to adopt gender-neutral language, such as ‘uncrewed’ for ‘unmanned’ and ‘human-made’ for ‘man-made’.
April 2021 “Dude! Your Kids Slang Isn’t As Bad As You Think”
In this article in National Geographic, I weigh in on how kids get creative with language and how this is good for learning and social development.
March 2020 “Why Do Americans Say ‘Bay-zle’ and the English Say ‘Baa-zle’?”
In this article in Curious Kids, a series in The Conversation in which academic experts answer real questions from real kids, I explain why accents exist and how they tell us something about who we are.
November 2019 “The Trends That May End the ‘Y’all’ Versus ‘You Guys’ Debate”
In this article in Quartz, I explain feminist reactions to ‘you guys’ and give my take on the cultural and linguistic promise of the word y’all, as well as potential challenges to its widespread adoption.
August 2018 Linguistic Society of America Member Spotlight
I am honored to be featured as the linguist of the month for the Linguistic Society of America’s August 2018 member spotlight. “Being open to insights from outside our discipline can give us important historical, cultural, and social knowledge that is necessary for putting information about language into broader social and cultural context,” says Christine Mallinson, this month’s featured LSA member.
I was interviewed for this article in Business Insider about the language of microaggressions, including some common phrases that can be used to transmit everyday slights and unconscious biases in the workplace. The piece received additional coverage in Business Insider (2020), Reader’s Digest (2020), and Marie Claire (2021).
March 2018 “How Home-State Pronunciations Can Shape Local Elections”
When a Maryland expat moves to Montana, he takes his accent with him! This article for the Atlantic considers the issue of how former Baltimore/Queen Anne’s resident and current Montana Republican U.S. Senate contender Matt Rosendale pronounces the name of his adopted home state.
July 2017 Profile in Baltimore’s (cool) progeny “Coffee With Parents” Series
I’m honored to be profiled as part of the “Coffee with Parents” series on Baltimore’s (cool) progeny blog. In the article, I talk about my own family history and my research on linguistic diversity, in education and in Baltimore.
I am honored to be a part of this Baltimore Sun multimedia feature story on Baltimore language change. The feature includes the news article as well as a short video in which I weigh in on language variation in the city, plus an interactive lexicon.
In this April 2013 interview on National Public Radio’s All Things Considered and hosted on the NPR Code Switch Blog, I talk about Baltimore adolescents’ use of ‘yo’ as a gender-neutral 3rd person singular pronoun–an unusual and interesting linguistic innovation in American English.
Christine Mallinson, Ph.D. 