Honorifics are a woefully antiquated sign of ye olde MSM. Like grown men who still send written thank-you cards, it smacks of creepiness and, far worse, insincerity. Which is why the Wall Street Journal will no longer using honorifics in its Sports section.

Jason Gay, WSJ sports columnist, explains:

Sports can be a messy, crude business—and the courtesy conferred by a ‘Mr.’ or ‘Ms.’ signaled a baseline of respect that has almost vanished. Calling a chill guy like Tim Lincecum “Mr. Lincecum” was pretty funny, but it also was decent. Remember how everyone used to love how Derek Jeter called then-manager Joe Torre ‘Mr. Torre’ even as he aged from a rookie into a veteran superstar? People loved it because it was gentlemanly.

Of course, this raises another question: Why use them in other sections (Ms. Gaga?!) but leave them out of sports? "If the papers are going to keep honorifics in some sections, they should keep them in Sports," notes Gish Bowl NY. "People who earn millions playing a game deserve the same respect as those who earn millions selling worthless crap, right?"

[via Mediabistro]