Death Sentence explains how the language of managerialism and marketing has invaded public life, giving examples from government, universities, schools and journalism. It's bad enough the language of bureaucracy has been desiccated by this process; so much worse that the language of universities and the media, where critical and independent thought ought to be articulating itself in strong, true, even unique language, has been corrupted by the same process. Having always wondered what on earth 'mission statements' were for, I was delighted to read Watson denouncing them, and showing how one statement could be applied equally well to a hamburger franchise, a supermarket or a government department. This is a fast-paced, entertaining, enlightening read, with a hilarious glossary at the end. Watson's main point is that democracy depends on common understanding, and therefore on plain language. As I read, I wanted to send this book to every member of parliament, every public servant, every university administrator, every marketing school. But it's likely that Death Sentence will find its readership among people who are already interested in language and how it works, rather than in those who would benefit most from its lucid account of what is wrong with public language, and what we could do to fix it.

Mary Ellen Jordan is a freelance writer.

Tags: don watson