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Issue Two Two Thousand and Twenty
The Communicator
Official Publication of the American Association of Dental Editors & Journalists
RESOURCES FOR DENTAL EDITORS FROM THE PRESIDENT
Peer Reviewing Peer Review Dreams Have Gone Dark
5 9
COVER ART: Dental offices were closed to one degree or another throughout the country
secondary to the COVID-19 political response. Predictably, dental health suffered greatly.
1 FROM THE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Facial Recognition
an apology from the Detroit police for 13% of the articles. 16% of the works
this case that is troubling on many included a statement about consent
levels.8 The same day Mr. Williams’ from the patient prior to publishing
case was reported, the Boston City the images. Interestingly, 34% of the
Council banned the technology editorially deidentified photographs
because of a high error rate, interfer- were recognizable, of which only 22%
ence with basic rights, and systemic were published with patient consent.
racism.9 Publishing pictures of well-known
Health professional editors are individuals, legally known as public
aware of how invaluable, and at times figures, is acceptable. But while
necessary, the use of patient clinical photographic distribution of Kobe
photographs are, particularly in Bryant’s basketball exploits was
dentistry. Besides the maxim that a never questioned, the release of
picture is worth 1,000 words,10 often graphic post-mortem unofficial imag-
the clinical point simply cannot even es from his helicopter crash site by LA
be made without photographs. County sheriff’s deputies was inap-
Dr. Daniel Orr II, CDE, AADEJ Editor-in-Chief
The more restrictive the photo- propriate and investigated.11 In May
A
number of scholarly works graphed area is, the less chance of this year, Kobe Bryant’s widow
have been published recent- identifying the patient generally. Vanessa Bryant filed a civil suit over
ly regarding editorially However, small but unique identifiers, the incident.12
deidentifying facial photo- such as the tennis racket shaped gold Even public figures have a right to
graphs.1, 2This trend has been prompt- foil, may be enough. In forensic privacy however, such as with heath
ed in part by the increasing sophistica- dentistry, less than a handful of issues. Sharon Stone once litigated
tion of facial recognition software unique pre- and post-mortem match- and prevailed against a plastic
programs in both proprietary3 and ing identifiers in sufficient detail are all surgeon who publicly announced he
governmental use.4 that is needed to establish a positive had performed her rhinoplasty.13
The subject of facial recognition is identification. Can consent be implied for publica-
nuanced and in flux in many ways as A 2018 analysis1 of 103 journals tion of recognizable images? Yes, it
individual and societal concerns are including 568 articles and 1404 clinical can. For instance the publication of
vetted. An entry level question to images revealed that about half identifiable data about AADEJ offi-
consider is if the use of technology to (52%) the journals had a written poli- cers in The Communicator, or other
identify individuals is even legal. The cy on clinical images. Identifiable dental authors, often with names and
answer to that question is a huge “it patient photographs were found in contact information included. When a
depends.” Different jurisdictions have
widely variant laws.5 In February 2020
References
1) Roguljić M, Buljan I, et al, Deidentification of facial photographs: a survey of editorial policies and practices, Brit Med J, 2019,
the U.S. Senate proposed a moratori- https://jme.bmj.com/content/early/2020/04/06/medethics-2019-105823, accessed 15 JUN 2020.
2) Jen-Sho Chen J Juluru K, Implications of Surface-Rendered Facial CT Images in Patient Privacy, Am J Roentgenology, 202:6,
um for the federal government’s 2014, https://www.ajronline.org/doi/full/10.2214/AJR.13.10608, accessed 15 JUN 2020.
facial recognition efforts.6 3) Facebook Help Center, What is the face recognition setting on Facebook and how does it work?, https://www.facebook.com/
help/122175507864081, accessed 15 JUN 2020.
Another issue is how accurate facial 4) Electronic Frontier Foundation, Street Level Surveillance, https://www.eff.org/pages/face-recognition, accessed 15 JUN 2020.
5) Crawford S, Facial Recognition Laws Are (Literally) All Over the Map, Wired.com, 12/16/19, https://www.wired.com/story/facial-
recognition is. Similarly, the results are recognition-laws-are-literally-all-over-the-map/, accessed 15 JUN 2020.
widely varied with ranges from 6) Johnson K, U.S. Senators propose facial recognition moratorium for federal government, Venturebeat, 2/12/20, https://venture-
beat.com/2020/02/12/u-s-senators-propose-facial-recognition-moratorium-for-federal-government/, accessed 15 JUN 2020.
50–99% and again heavily nuanced. 7) Lohr S, Facial Recognition Is Accurate, if You’re a White Guy, NY Times, 2/9/18, https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/09/technolo-
gy/facial-recognition-race-artificial-intelligence.html, accessed 15 JUN 2020.
Caucasian males have the highest 8) O’Brien M, Detroit police challenged over face recognition flaws, bias, Fox23 News, June 24, 2020, https://www.fox23.com/news/
accuracy rate but validity can drop detroit-police/MDHWC66XI7PYOP4TVC5PJGWXMQ/, accessed 24 JUN 2020.
9) DeCosta-Klipa, N, Boston City Council unanimously passes ban on facial recognition technology, boston.com local news, June
significantly for other groups.7 Robert 24, 2020, https://www.boston.com/news/local-news/2020/06/24/boston-face-recognition-technology-ban, accessed 24 JUN
Williams, a black man from Detroit, 2020.
10) Barnard, FR, One look is worth a thousand words, Printer’s Ink, December 1921.
was arrested in 2020 for a 2018 crime 11) Lapin T, LA deputies shared graphic photos of Kobe Bryant crash scene, NY Post, 2/27/20.
secondary to faulty facial identifica- 12) West J, Vanessa Bryant Files Claim Over release of Kobe Bryant Crash Site Photos, Sports Illustrated, 5/9/20, https://www.
si.com/nba/2020/05/09/vanessa-bryant-claim-photos-kobe-bryant-helicopter-crash-scene, accessed 15 JUN 2020.
tion software. Mr. Williams is seeking 13) Stone vs Calabria, BC8245314 CA, 2004.
American Association of Dental Editors & Journalists
FROM THE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
2
request for short biographies and A Book Review of
photos of authors for use with
submitted articles is answered affir- The Dentist’s Drug and Prescription Guide
matively, consent to publish those
A
items can be reasonably implied.
s dentists we know the syndrome other than to mention that
Does one need consent for uncon- majority of the prescriptions the patient has an irregular lead-2
sented publication of deidentified we write are for antibiotics EKG with a longer time (or space on
photographs? Well, no, as long as and pain relievers. the displayed strip) between the Q
they are truly not identifiable. But Occasionally we might prescribe and the T wave and these people are
recall the study above where a third muscle relaxers, anti-inflammatory the ones you hear about collapsing
of the blacked-out photos were still drugs, antisialogogues, or even anti-vi- while playing sports and are not
recognizable. ral medications. In addition we are successfully revived. This is because a
So can one publish photographs of very aware that the most common defibrillator is required to revive them.
a patient with consent? Yes, but the drug we use in our practice is a local A good reason to keep an AED in your
consent must be valid, ideally from anesthetic. That is a short list which office as stress tends to set this off
the patient who is competent to would not require a very long book. and as you know, some people do get
consent (i.e. of age, not mentally However, due to drug reactions and stressed at a dental office.
compromised, not under duress, etc.). side effects dentists must be aware of Another area of drugs covered are
Of course, age limitations can refer to potential actions due to a patient’s those that are not prescribed – illicit
children mentally competent to cross pathological condition as well as the drugs. This section is very important to
the street but without the legal ability various medications they are taking. read and decide how you will get a
to buy a car, vote, or consent to the This book is more than just a list of patient to reveal to you if they are
publication of their likeness. Can a pills for dentists. As you could imagine taking any illicit drugs – especially
parent consent for the child? Does the it is also not a book that you would cocaine. I used to go down the list of
parent have physical and legal custo- open up for a comfortable short read! drugs taken and then casually
dy? Do coequal parents agree on the mention that we go down the list
The book starts with prescription
publication plan? including illicit drugs as some, such as
terms and the process and guidelines
All this can be complicated. Check for writing prescriptions. Since most of cocaine, can cause a person to have a
the appropriate state statutes (or the prescriptions dentists write are heart attack when we give them local
Federal or Indian Nation depending antibiotics there is a generous section anesthetic. I’ve found some interesting
on the situation) and try to make a on that with situations to consider, responses and confessions when
reasonable judgement for the (pregnancy, heart conditions, etc.), and doing that!
academic, non-private publication of questions and answers. This follows I do recommend this book for any
potentially sensitive data. with other typical dentist-prescribed dentist even if they are not writing
Editor-in-Chief’s Notes drugs and the atypical ones usually prescriptions. This book will help in
Special thanks to Daniel L. Orr III, MBA, CAMS, used more commonly by specialists or working with people taking medica-
CFCS, and Compliance Officer, First National dentists dealing with implant surgeries tions - legal, illicit, and over-the-count-
Bank of Bastrop (Texas) for facial recognition of various types, and patient maladies. er—that are affecting the oral systemic
background information. There is also a special section on HIV system that dentists concentrate on.
AADEJ readership will note that his issue of The written by Cheryl Barber, MPH, MSOD Besides the paperback version there is
Communicator is electronic only, in keeping that is well worth reading through her an ePub edition as well as a pdf
with the proposed plan alternate hard print and
electronic only issues. The electronic issues 21 pages on this topic. version available. You can order from
allow the AADEJ some increased wiggle room Personally, I was pleased to find a the Wiley Blackwell site:
as far as article content.
heart pathology addressed that my https://tinyurl.com/yxb9s8wo
The Communicator would like to encourage grandson has which is not often The Dentist’s Drug and Prescription Guide, Second
members to submit works to the AADEJ to help mentioned – elongated QT syndrome. edition. Mea A. Weinberg; Stuart J. Froum, Stuart
develop an archive of articles the membership L. Segelnick. ISBN: 9781119539346, Pages:
can republish and to republish in The Coincidentally, elongated QT 312. Price: $66.64 Paperback. Publisher: Wiley
Communicator itself. The rights to these works syndrome is a heart condition that Blackwell, 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030,
will not be claimed by the AADEJ and submis- causes problems for many patients USA, Copyright: 2020, Published: March 15, 2020
sion of the works implies that the AADEJ and when given the much mentioned
members may republish. As an example, this Editor-in-Chief’s note
issue of The Communicator has an editorial, Hydroxychloroquine malaria drug The AADEJ’s own Dr. Stuart Segelnick is one of
“Johnny Carson, TP, and Memories of suggested for the Covid-19 virus. I will the co-authors.
Woodstock,” originally developed for the not go into the details of elongated QT
Nevada Dental Association Journal.
Issue 2, Two Thousand and Twenty
3 FROM THE EDITOR -IN-CHIEF
From the Executive Director
It’s Awards Season!
The Gies and Meskin Journalism Award submissions are due August 1.
Information about each award can be found on the facing page and on the
website: www.aadej.org. Click on Awards and Honors to find each award.
Officer Position Available
The AADEJ Board of Directors will be looking to fill the position of Secretary/
Treasurer by the Annual Conference Board meeting (Virtual!) in October.
The Secretary/Treasurer’s main duties include:
• Keep and distribute minutes of the meetings of the Association and the
Board of Directors.
• Conduct the official correspondence of the Association and the Board of
Directors.
• Make an annual report as Secretary to the Board of Directors and to the
Meg Plummer, AADEJ Executive Director Association.
meg@aadej.org • Make an annual report as Treasurer to the Board of Directors and to the
Association.
• Attend monthly conference calls and yearly Annual Conference.
Call for Volunteers! Your Talent Is Needed!
AADEJ members are needed for volunteer positions
during the upcoming year, including positions on the
AADEJ Board and committee members
Open positions on the AADEJ Board include vice-president and secretary/
AADEJ Past-President treasurer. Individuals serving as vice-president will serve one year in that posi-
Richard Roadcap tion, then one year as president-elect, one year as president, and one year as
immediate past president. The secretary/treasurer position typically is held for
Our own Richard Roadcap has been a period of several years. The individual serving in that position may run for
appointed as Editor of the USA vice-president and then continue up the leadership chain, but it is not required.
Section of the International College of
Dentists. The AADEJ congratulates The AADEJ is also looking for individuals to serve as a member or chair of
the ICD on an excellent choice. various committees, including the Membership Committee, Certified Dental
Congratulations Richard! Editor Standing Committee, Strategic Planning Committee, Nominating
Committee, and Eligibility Committee.
AADEJ Bylaws Revisions Coming
Revisions to the Constitution and Bylaws of the American Association of
Dental Editors and Journalists will be presented to the membership in August,
to provide the required 60-day notice prior to the AADEJ Annual Meeting . The
Bylaws changes will be presented in The Communicator or via a special email
to the membership.
As this issue goes to press, the AADEJ meeting in Orlando had been
canceled, with an alternate virtual meeting tentatively scheduled for mid- to
late-October. Watch for further details.
The AADEJ Board will finalize the bylaws revisions at its August teleconfer-
ence meeting. Anticipated changes include the addition of a Program Chair
officer position, changes to the secretary/treasurer position, and other house-
keeping changes. Thank you all!
American Association of Dental Editors & Journalists
FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
4
William J Gies Award Editorial Award
PRESENTED BY: THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF DENTAL EDITORS & JOURNALISTS AND THE WILLIAM J. GIES
FOUNDATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF DENTISTRY OF THE AMERICAN DENTAL EDUCATION ASSOCIATION
Since 1958 the William J. Gies Editorial Award has been presented yearly to the author of the most valuable editorial
published in a dental journal or periodical. Recognizing the Gies Editorial Award winner has been the joint privilege of
the American Association of Dental Editors & Journalists (AADEJ) and the William J. Gies Foundation for the
Advancement of Dentistry of the American Dental Education Association (ADEA Gies Foundation).
The Gies Editorial Award is considered to be highly prestigious in dentistry and is presented annually at the AADEJ
Annual Conference (held prior to the ADA Annual Session).
The Gies Editorial Award consists of a plaque and a $1,500 honorarium. Certificates and honoraria are also presented to
First and Second Honorable Mentions. The Gies Editorial Award Committee, the AADEJ, and the ADEA look forward to
your participation.
INFORMATION ABOUT THE 2020 GEIS AWARD ELIGIBILITY
Editors of professional dental publications, and any others NOT associated with proprietary periodicals, are invited to
submit a copy of no more than two of their editorials, published during the previous calendar year, which they believe
are outstanding. Eligible periodicals are those under the regulation of a professional dental society or a society of
dental hygienists, dental assistants, dental schools, dental alumni or a dental fraternity. Regulation implies control of
editorial and scientific contributions in the periodical, in addition control of advertising in order to assure its accuracy
and factuality.
ENTRY REQUIREMENTS
The letter of transmittal with your submitted editorials must include the volume, number, month, and name of the publi-
cation in which the editorial appeared, as well as the name of the editor. Also, please be sure that your submission is
either a quality photo or pdf made from the original publication. Manuscript copies will not be accepted.
ENTRY SUBMISSION DEADLINE
Please e-mail your submission to: meg@aadej.org
The submission deadline for this year is August 1, 2020.
RECOGNTION
The Gies Editorial Award is considered to be highly prestigious in dentistry and is presented annually at the AADEJ
Annual Conference (held prior to the ADA Annual Session). This year the award will be presented on October 14, 2020 in
Orlando, Florida.
The Gies Editorial Award for 2020 consists of a plaque and a $1,500 honorarium. Certificates and honoraria are also
presented to First and Second Honorable Mentions. The Gies Editorial Award Committee, the AADEJ, and the ADEA look
forward to your participation.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Contact the American Association of Dental Editors & Journalists at 630-723-1582.
Issue 2, Two Thousand and Twenty
5 RESOURCES FOR DENTAL EDITORS
Peer Reviewing Peer Review
the whole publication of every refer- reviews for the committee to evaluate
ence I used in my paper. They had so each submission without having each
many questions and the whole reviewer evaluate all of the submis-
process took forever!” sions. Secondly, they found a way to
If the reviewer has questions or evaluate the reviewers utilizing
ascertains that the paper is not of computer programs. Thus, the review-
good quality, they communicate their ers are checked out as to their qualifi-
conclusions back to the editor. If they cations instead of being someone the
conclude the manuscript is accept- Editor knows or someone who wrote
able they give their approval to the a low level paper on the crista gall 50
editor. The editor takes the three years ago and never went back to
reviews into consideration as to that area again. The papers are
whether the paper will be published chosen for the reviewers that match
or not. up best for the topic. 1
As many of us already know, this Some other new ideas I’ve read
can be very time consuming for each about to lessen the labor for peer
Dan Jenkins, DDS, CDE person involved. Some of the “Pay-to- review are to lessen the number
Publish” or “predatory” publications required for peer review or to pay the
T
he topic of peer review is not process their reviewing of manu- reviewers for their time and expertise.
new to dentist editors. scripts in innovative ways. Some ask I know you are now either thinking,
Typically in a peer-reviewed the author to find reviewers on their “How much would a reviewer get
publication the process is own or they might have only one paid?” or “How much will I have to
assigning a submitted manuscript to other peer actually review the paper. pay a reviewer?” Would the reviewer
three, or more, people who the edito- get paid by the word count as well as
I read recently suggestions of not the number of references? Who
rial team determines is qualified in
even having a peer review process. It would pay for access to the referenc-
that area to access the accuracy of
was felt that the peer review process es if it is not publically accessible?
the information, research, and
is flawed due to friends of the author
originality. I feel the bottom line in all of this is
doing the reviews and the assump-
The reviewer then reads the manu- tion that very few reviewers actually for us editors to do our best to
script and decides if they have the check out the references or the provide our readers/members of the
time and knowledge to review it. If the reported research. Therefore, they felt most ethical, accurate, timely, and
reviewer agrees they notify the editor that we might as well just go to the interesting material we can under our
and the editor smiles. type of quality control that some circumstances. We usually do not
software companies use—let the user have the budget a “predatory journal”
The reviewer then plows through might have. Will we see the day when
the manuscript and makes notes on evaluate the product for themselves.
In other words, the reader would eval- AADEJ’s The Communicator will
some things they may want to inves- require a fee to publish an article?
tigate or ask the author about uate the accuracy or quality of the
through the editor. There is no direct paper for themselves. If they wish, *Dan Jenkins is the past Editor-in-Chief, a Past
contact between the reviewers and they can send a letter to the Editor President of the AADEJ, and currently Editor for the
Tri-County Dental Society of the California Dental
the author. In fact, neither know who about their evaluation. Association. He is the 2018 recipient of the Distin-
the other is as that information is not Another new approach has come guished Dental Editor Award.
in the reviewer’s manuscript. about through the astronomy indus- References
Next comes the hardest part— try. This process is labeled 1) Wolfgang E. Kerzendorf, Ferdinando Patat, Dominic
Bordelon, Glenn van de Ven, Tyler A. Pritchard. Distributed peer
reviewing the references. I remember “Distributed Peer Review.” When review enhanced with natural language processing and
a dentist complaining emphatically someone is making a proposal they machine learning. Nature Astronomy, 2020; DOI: 10.1038/
s41550-020-1038-y
about a paper he submitted being are asked to review submitted
questioned about several of his refer- proposals from others who are their
ences. He said, “I bet that guy read competitors. This provides many
American Association of Dental Editors & Journalists
RESOURCES FOR DENTAL EDITORS
6
Procuring Content In
A Dental Publication
we don’t know” (Donald Rumsfeld) and hate to have to say it again, but “be
those are the articles someone more prepared to pester!” and don’t worry,
knowledgeable should write about, you’ll get used to calling, emailing,
unless it’s a topic you would enjoy texting, video chatting and even meet-
researching and can fully immerse ing in person (which was tough to do
yourself into learning within a deadline. before the pandemic, imagine now
Consider taking a topic of interest with) your contributors multiple times
and running it by some of your reminding them to submit their articles.
colleagues, friends, and family to see Sometimes you’ll get lucky and find
their reaction, then decide how it’s time another kindred dental soul who enjoys
related, can you write it yourself by writing as much as you do. Cherish and
next edition or would it take you a year nurture that spirit, for then you can rely
to compose? Would it still be of interest on recurrent contributions. Remember,
in a few months? When I find an inspir- this is not a scientific peer-reviewed
ing subject matter, I can literally lose journal that every dentist dreams about
myself to nonstop hours of writing until publishing in. I usually ask my contribu-
Stuart L. Segelnick DDS, MS., AADEJ Vice President it’s completed. However, there are only tors for anywhere between 800 to 1,000
words. Some formats of 500–800
O
so many articles the editor can write,
ne of the main tasks of the and variety does spice up the pages. words work well, too. I find most read-
dental editor is to acquire ers of newsletters tend to get bored
relevant content for his/her Imaginative, informative, and impact- after 1,000 words unless it’s a spectacu-
publication. Other portions ful stories from a personal point of view lar article. There is a mathematical
of the job description include writing are ones I seek. Finding them is a differ- formula in producing a set page count
catchy titles, publicizing future events ent story. Being highly involved in your issue, one I’ve yet to master.
(whether it is the next society meeting local dental society activities, such as
attending board meetings, CE At the Second District Dental Society
or CE program), and dressing up the Bulletin of New York, I’ve been very
pages with pleasant pertinent pictures, programs and joining committees,
along with appearing at your annual fortunate to have a great group of
graphics, logos, and art. A classified associate editors, staff and an execu-
section, job boards, society board state dental association and ADA
annual meetings is essential in recruit- tive director that give me plenty of
meeting minutes and advertisements, leeway in bulletin content. Their contri-
all round out, a finely constructed ing potential contributors for your
publication. Teaching at your local butions are truly appreciated. Placing a
printed dental bulletin. Digital editions high priority on following up with
should include links and videos. dental school and hospital dental
department also opens opportunity to authors and contributors after publica-
Ask almost any dental editor about mingle and discover new contributors. tion is essential. Who doesn’t value
how challenging it is to fill their newslet- being thanked for their hard work? I
ters up with meaningful text, for each Theme issues encompassing differ- suggest emailing them a copy of the
publication, and they will surely ent perspectives can be difficult to Newsletter with a thank you note. I’ll be
commiserate. Many dental editors are achieve but extremely rewarding. waiting for one from Dan II, editor of
dentists with the distinct advantage of Usually I target a handful of individuals The Communicator, but I won’t be too
understanding their readership conversant on the subject, until I find disappointed if I don’t receive it, he’s
because they are living a similar around five different people who probably just trying to help me develop
professional life. Recently, Dr. Brian accept to contribute. Try not to be thick skin for the numerous rejections
Shue reminded me of the saying discouraged by multiple rejections. Out an editor must endure. “Hey Dan II, I’d
attributed to Mark Twain of “write what of the five, I’m lucky if three actually appreciate some feedback on this arti-
you know” and we dentists surely know submit it in time and send in an accept- cle, can you let me know if it helped our
about dentistry. We also “know what able article. Be prepared to pester. I members?”
Issue 2, Two Thousand and Twenty
7 RESOURCES FOR DENTAL EDITORS
– And Now –
for Something
Completely
Mental
D
beholder. There’s a fine line between part of the live audience of the
poor taste and good humor bar none. Hollywood taping of the NBC TV
It’s healthy for humor to be found in sitcom “Newsradio” (starring Dave
the pages of our dental publications. Foley, Maura Tierney, and Phil
Laughter is the best medicine. Hartman). Afterwards, we even got to
Although appropriate, it can also be a meet the showrunner, Paul Simms,
challenge. who was related to a friend of ours,
On occasion, an author will submit and even talked to some of the stars
something with an attempt at humor. on the set (they look bigger on TV).
Is it funny? Is it appropriate? Is it unin- But we had the chance to pull back
tentionally mean-spirited? You may the curtains. During the taping, the
find the author, from his or her indi- “laugh” sign was on and the producers
vidual perspective, may not know. strongly encouraged (forced) us to
That’s where your experience as an laugh. Hard. At everything. So we did.
editor or as a reviewer on an editorial Whether or not a line or action was
board is important. In fact, if I happen even funny or not. Of course, parts of
Brian Shue, DDS, CDE, AADEJ President Elect to miss something in the editing it were funny. But not everything.
phase, that’s where a strong set of Even professionals who get paid to
reviewers comes in handy, which will make you laugh don’t always get it
M
onty Python isn’t funny. know what does or does not belong. right. Honestly, how often do you
Dead parrots, Spam, With a little help from your friends, laugh out loud watching an episode
weaponized fruit, knights you can prevent a Revolution #9 of “Friends”?
who repeat silly syllables from appearing on your pages. “Two penguins went into a bar.” Years
ad nauseam—sorry, not laughing. Am ago, that line would make me and my
Humorous writing isn’t easy.
I losing my sense of humor? Not sure. then three-year-old daughter break
Sometimes it can be spotted a mile
I can’t remember if Monty Python out into uncontrolled laughter. And
away. It may appear forced, it may
was ever funny to me—maybe just a there was no punchline to follow. With
appear contrived or it might not be
little silly. But that was way back, all that laughter, there was no need to
funny to anyone else without a
during high school. create one. But it’s obvious jokes on
canned laugh track.
What makes something humorous? that level may not be right. Know your
Speaking of which, back in 1998, my target audience.
Like beauty, it is in the eye of the
wife and I had the greatest time being
American Association of Dental Editors & Journalists
RESOURCES FOR DENTAL EDITORS
Another example of something funny up with a much more practical consumption. Without the gentle
8
to me is from the classic Peanuts production model. Meaning no disre- touch of humor, my sincere ode to
movie “Snoopy, come home,” where spect, but teeth seem to have been the Crawcour brothers Royal Mineral
our beloved dog could not sit quietly an afterthought, perhaps near the Succedaneum appeared dryer than a
in the library and erupted in a fit of end of the sixth day when, along with mercury squeeze cloth.
laughter as he read book about broccoli and fire ants, things were Has COVID-19 affected our funny
bunnies. What was the punchline? being created in haste without bones? You be the judge. Editor Stuart
Charlie and Sally Brown weren’t enough research and development or L. Segelnick, DDS, MS takes a look at
laughing. Schulz did not reveal the prototypes in order to meet a a “Dr. Iffy Future, the Sterile Dentist” in
punchline, but those bunnies must Sabbath deadline. his column titled “Post-Apocalyptic
have been up to something. In that 1999 issue, Dr. Horseman Pandemic Practice of Dentistry” that
Imagining what comes next, from our offered his writing advice: appears in the June-July 2020
own perspectives in life, that makes Bulletin of the Second District Dental
using open-ended humor like this • Never record anything that
contains verifiable facts. In fact, Society of New York. A patient with a
very cool. toothache in the post-apocalyptic
stay away from facts altogether;
There’s a right way and a wrong way they can be an acute source of pandemic future of ours enters a
to using humor in your publications. embarrassment to the publishers practice and follows an employee
Nobody did humor the right way and me. who: “led him into and past what was
better than Robert Horseman, DDS, once known as a waiting room. Now
Humorous Emeritus of the California • Aim for 900 words, including “a” the once mellow room vibrated with
Dental Association who had a column and “the.” UV light enhancers; it was a place no
for so many years (Dr. Horseman just • That’s it—900 words of nonfactual one in the office wanted to stay too
turned 100—Happy Birthday!). His material. You think that’s easy? I’ll long, especially if they had forgotten
witty articles were so popular, the first sit around for 20 minutes honing to apply sunscreen.” With Arthur C.
thing most readers probably did was an article based on whimsy, Clarke-ish PPE and armamentarium,
automatically turn to the back page, fantasy and quirkiness when all of “Dr. Iffy frowned, but you could hardly
where his column could be found. He a sudden a fact sneaks in and I see it through the space force helmet
sure set the bar very high for the rest have to start all over again. he wore attached to his latest dental
of us. Of note, Dr. Horseman’s column How does one follow Dr. Horseman? space suit and integrated oxygen
appeared on two pages, which One doesn’t. In November 2017, I supply. The helmet’s screen radiated,
required flipping backwards into the wrote the CDA editorial “How I trans-illuminated and magnified the
journal after reading the first page. I learned to stop worrying and love mouth, while the AI cloudbased dental
don’t know if there is a specific name dental amalgam” in a slightly serious, system diagnosed the Problem…”
for that layout design, but it isn’t too slightly humorous, slightly tongue-in- Dr. Segelnick, currently serving as
common. Former AADEJ Editor Dan cheek tone. It was reprinted the AADEJ vice president, knows what is
Jenkins, DDS used that design with following year in the Pierre Fauchard funny. In that same issue, he also
my fun-with-Harris-and-Hayden Academy’s Dental Abstracts newslet- included the article “Hmm, I hadn’t
history articles in previous ter as a straightforward commentary thought about that” where author
Communicator newsletters. I guess article—it was something completely John P. Demas, DDS from New York
that might be due to the author’s fault different. For instance, I contrasted has an inner discussion/debate with
for not staying within the boundaries the warning labels on my jars of “Healthy Skepticism (middle name
of the magical word count (just like amalgam capsules with the lack of Cautious)” on the licensed use of
this article). such warnings on cans of albacore “dermal fillers” where he politely
In the June 1999 CDA Journal that tuna. That was removed. And what argues: “My buddy in Ohio gives
honored Dr. Horseman’s achieve- happened to the description of the those injections in his office all the
ments, he picked “Dental engineering” amalgam restorations in my very time. What’s your problem?? And
(April 1991) as his favorite. He opened own mouth: “They are like tiny, shiny Healthy Skepticism answers: Ohio is
with the following: badges of courage in the never not New York.”
ending battle against Streptococcus
There is not a dentist throughout the Take my newsletter, please. Once, I
Mutans, acidic environments and the
world who, at one time or another, created an all-humor issue for my
modern world’s non-Paleolithic diet”?
has not considered the human denti- San Diego County Dental Society
Gone. On the cutting room floor at
tion to be a huge design error, a sort (just once). As I look through it right
the PFA. Someone took the time to
of oral Edsel. Had he been consulted now, I have to admit, some of it was
remove those observations and my
during the initial stages of design, he
other attempts at humor, for safe
is quite certain he could have come Continues →
Issue 2, Two Thousand and Twenty9 FROM THE PRESIDENT
Dreams Have Gone Dark
perspectives on me/us as dentists and I chose to use an atypical style of
and inhabitants of our planet. communication that mirrors the world
I am a family practice dentist, closer in “mirror in a fun house” way.
to retirement than mid-career. Shut Maybe it is more like an eclipse
down for two months, slowly merging An eclipse that perpetually
back onto the patient care freeway. lingers
This journey has taken me emotional-
ly, financially and physically to dark Two large celestial bodies frozen
and scary places, some I knew exist- in a synchronous orbit casting a
ed, others I had never conceived. Only never-ending shadow
recognizing depression from the Dreams, desires, plans, aspira-
occasional glimpse of normal that tions, and life itself have been
would bring on a feeling of euphoria put on hold
Early on I was feeling a morbid sense Significantly slowed down or
of excitement, still feeling invincible vanquished forever
because of all the previous life turmoil
Mike Diorio, DDS, CDE, AADEJ President Once in a lifetime events have
I have survived. A storm chaser of a
been lost, never to be fully expe-
pandemic. Ready to go to battle, help
T
rienced, to be shared
his is my personal thought others navigate the pitfalls because I
entropy of the whole COVID- can handle anything. Then later Maybe re-created at some
19 cluster that has rolled into having moments of being emotionally future time wearing a perfuncto-
our world like a fog—maybe curled up in the fetal position, ry cloak?
like a wildfire? Perhaps with shades of completely helpless and scared. It has brought death but forbids
a never-ending eclipse? Macro and This is completely atypical to us from communal compassion-
wide-angle off leash cerebral anything else we have experienced, ate grieving
Continued from page 10 →
(and is still) cringe-worthy. It began comedy show. It included fake CE Fluoridate,
with high-brow entertainment, with course advertisements, like: “Esthetic All my decay seemed so far away,
fake news coverage of the strange Amalgams: your patients will have no
true story about my former U.S. patience without these beautiful silver Now it looks as though it’s here to
Representative (now an infamously restorations” by I. Beholder, DDS, stay,
disgraced ex-San Diego mayor which stated: “Even though we are in OH I believe in Fluoridate.
named Bob Filner), who actually the 21st century, these restorations
Why she didn’t drink tap water,
wanted to build a new San Diego will have your patients partying like
International Airport 100+ miles away its 1889.” I don’t know she wouldn’t say,
from San Diego, in the middle of Other articles in this issue included She drank something wrong
nowhere, right next to my hometown “Tooth fairy shut down by OSHA,”
of El Centro (famously known for Now I long to Fluoridate.
“Denti-Cola announces plan to be
being the birthplace of Cher). He exclusive sponsor of our dental soci- Forgive me, Sir Paul. My newsletter
wanted to connect this planned ety” (my executive director wouldn’t advertisers did.
airport to Greater San Diego with a let me say “Coca-Cola”) and Did you laugh? Smile? As I said earlier,
multi-billion dollar bullet train (bullet “Surprise concert on the roof of our using humor in your publication isn’t
train … California … billions and billions dental society building” which includ- easy. The take home message: be
of dollars … hmm, could that actually ed my made-up lyrics to a song yourself. Humor happens. Try it.
work?). called “Fluoridate,” based on the
But then the issue started to go silly, song “Yesterday” by the Beatles. It
like a skit in an unfunny British went like this:
American Association of Dental Editors & JournalistsFROM THE PRESIDENT
Is the darkness permanent? Will Walking a path on a cliff side
10
There is also hope, tales of
our previously known lumines- with an unstable surface, either David vs Goliath victories
cence return? real or perceived Epic battles on the fields of
Simple human contact and Every step is tenuous, solid health where disease has been
interaction, essential elements ground or quicksand? slayed
of life Strife and anguish, emotional Communal understanding and
Have greatly vanished and physical destruction empathy still survive
Casual touch and contact with Forbidden to care as a practi- Creativity, compassion, and
others can energize and revive, tioner, helplessly watching, support still have a voice
yet is now in short supply unable to reach out and cure, Innovation and the basic desire
Masks contain the spread, but prevent to survive are still with us
also contain identities, parts of Existing in a surreal hybrid, part Relief and reassurance abound
non-verbal cues are swathed in fun house and part haunted
white out mansion Re-emergence is occurring, like thin
slivers of light that find the floor of a
Pleasurable activities and events No immunity to the virus deep dark forest. I am cautiously
are on hold, re-emergence No immunity to the hoping and praying that light slowly
pending repercussions? returns, disperses the dark and allows
Our outlets for fun, relaxation, The invisible assassin, feeling the for new growth on the fields of dreams.
modes and methods of coping crosshairs of the scope on us These thoughts are like pieces of some
with stresses have been altered amorphous jigsaw puzzle, no true
or removed Will the trigger be pulled?
border or edge pieces to frame from,
Unknown is now the core shade Paranoia & ignorance, abundant some fit nowhere in the puzzle, other fit
of life and extreme everywhere. All our puzzles are differ-
It is hard to plant new dream Social injustice, unrest that has ent, yet they are the same. This may
seeds right now burst, a festering sore under resonate with no one or may make
our skin complete sense.
Will it be wasted effort, hopes
and desires sown on barren Economic devastation First and foremost I feel our role as
grounds? editors and journalists is to stimulate
Music has always been my therapist,
thought, to discuss the uncomfortable,
Science and emotions in conflict, the soundtrack to my past, and the
to enlighten, inform, validate, or
both real but incongruent, inter- fertile soil for future dreams. Does the
question.
twined yet separate music we can no longer see carry
clues to the chaotic symphony we are My hope is something I have shared or
One based on tangible facts, the performing? American Pie, the day more appropriately spewed out vali-
other rooted in an accumulation the music died comes to mind. The dates one unique, strange thought or
of experiences and observations Beatles Helter Skelter, will playing it feeling that someone else has felt, or
intertwined with long held beliefs backward reveal a cure? The punk will feel through this quasi apocalyptic
How do we live, move on band Ramones screaming I want disruption. We are alone, yet we are
through the fog, and navigate to (and need) to be sedated not. Embrace the darkness, the
safety without even the stars to (ventilated)? distance and separation and use its
guide us? energy to unite us once more.
Hopes right now are like ripe
grapes hanging from the vine
Unsure if their destiny will be a These thoughts are like pieces
well-crafted wine or shriveled up
raisins left for the scavengers of some amorphous jigsaw
Realizing that some things lost
will never return puzzle, no true border or
Or at least never return in the
comfortable familiar form we
previously knew
edge pieces to frame from.
Issue 2, Two Thousand and TwentyAmerican Association of Dental Editors and Journalists
2112 West Galena Boulevard, Suite 8-312
Aurora, IL, 60506
www.aadej.org
Free Online CDE
www.adaceonline.org
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