Pubdate: Tue, 08 Jul 2003 Source: Tennessean, The (TN) Copyright: 2003 The Tennessean Contact: http://www.tennessean.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/447 Author: Linda Ashford GIVING SLANG PRESS COVERAGE GOING TOO FAR To the Editor: It looks like I risk being called ''uncool'' by refusing to ''acquire'' the slanguage (sic) of the hip-hop generation. (''School for the uncool,'' July 3) From a close look at the dictionary in A. Tacuma Roeback's article, it seems like a portion of these words belong to a probable drug culture. Now, I am highly supportive and downright chauvinistic when it comes to celebrating our youth today. For example, I am not interested in devaluing our real track stars who slog it out day in and day out on the high school track by taking that moniker for a coward. When The Tennessean publishes slang words for a jail cell, lips that have smoked too much marijuana and a police helicopter, I would say that they have mastered yet another type of language and that is talking out of both sides of their mouth at the same time. How can our youth take us seriously about saying no to drugs when we are so cavalier about the very trappings of this culture? So, Tennessean, take it from one of your own - it's now time to ''pump the brakes.'' Linda Ashford Nashville 37212 - --- MAP posted-by: Keith Brilhart