A reader of this column asked about the proper use of who and that.

Here’s an often-cited quip by George Bernard Shaw: "The government who robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend on the support of Paul."

Shaw is regarded as a skilled writer. But is his use of who correct? Not according to language guru Charles Harrington Elster. In his useful and entertaining style guide What in the Word?, Elster writes: "It is a grave sin to use who of things, as in ‘the company who.’"

On National Public Radio recently, I heard the words “news journalists.” This is a quintessential redundancy. My hunch is that the commentator’s intended meaning was “print journalists,” in contrast to those who work in broadcasting or online.

Here are a few more redundant expressions I encountered recently in the pages of newspapers and online:

• “Does it put a negative stigma on a company? I think the answer is definitely.”

My income is based almost entirely on writing. And it has given me a very rich life — rich in every sense of the word. It can do the same for you.

I spend half of my working time coaching copywriters on how to write better marketing copy. I spend the other half writing memos.

I’ve long been fascinated by unintentionally amusing mistakes in the media. For years, I’ve sought and saved such howlers, appending snappy comebacks. I’m now assembling my collection into a book. Below are a few recently culled specimens.