‘Finally’ of the Day

CMS systems should raise a flag every time an editor or writer tries to use finally in a headline.

In this particular case — “Apple Might Finally Be Beating Samsung in Smartphone Sales”, from Time — the finally seems out of place because I’m not sure anyone expected this to happen until recently. Apple bears saw (and continue to see) Apple as doomed; Apple bulls generally understand that Apple doesn’t pursue market share in and of itself. iPhone sales last quarter were surprisingly good, and Samsung’s decline in unit sales has been surprisingly bad.

★ Thursday, 29 January 2015