Comment on The spectre haunting San FranciscoparentComments−scatters12yUK here. It's definitely been in use as journalistic jargon for a while, typically in the form of a headline "Explainer: <topic of article>", e.g. http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/libertycentral/2009... (2009); here's a trend graph that shows that usage has picked up in the last decade: http://www.google.com/trends/explore#q=explainerEarliest citation I've been able to find (1998): http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=kw9lAAAAMAAJ&q=%22an+expl... - note that this is US, not UK.Article on "explainer" journalism; a little informal but demonstrates usage: http://www.theawl.com/2014/03/eleven-questions-about-explain...−smoyer12yWow ... apparently I'm ignorant twice with this comment (at least the last one I made was well-received):a) Culturally ignorant - I had no idea that "explainer" was in common use in the UK. I would have called the rest of the article "an explanation".b) Literally ignorant - How did I miss that this wasn't an Economist article?Sorry!
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UK here. It's definitely been in use as journalistic jargon for a while, typically in the form of a headline "Explainer: <topic of article>", e.g. http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/libertycentral/2009... (2009); here's a trend graph that shows that usage has picked up in the last decade: http://www.google.com/trends/explore#q=explainer
Earliest citation I've been able to find (1998): http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=kw9lAAAAMAAJ&q=%22an+expl... - note that this is US, not UK.
Article on "explainer" journalism; a little informal but demonstrates usage: http://www.theawl.com/2014/03/eleven-questions-about-explain...
Wow ... apparently I'm ignorant twice with this comment (at least the last one I made was well-received):
a) Culturally ignorant - I had no idea that "explainer" was in common use in the UK. I would have called the rest of the article "an explanation".
b) Literally ignorant - How did I miss that this wasn't an Economist article?
Sorry!