Not long ago I read a blog post and subsequently posted a comment on Twitter. It seems that I read one thing but the writer of the post had suggested something else. It lead to a brief back and forth. Nothing ugly but the publisher was unnerved. I had simply responded to something that was clearly unclear. It made me think about the reader’s responsibility.
Who’s responsible?
While a reader bears some responsibility to understand what’s in front of them, a writer carries the greater responsibility to be understood. And just as the customer is always right, what the content consumer understands is ultimately all that counts.
I know this because in my own fast moving world I’m frequently misunderstood. As the person working to transmit ideas, the failure is almost invariably on my shoulders.
As it should be.