Is it Capital or Capitol Tonight?

[Mark Giardina]

For those of you who are on satellite or have OTA TV, there is a statewide political/news program that airs over YNN (owned by Time Warner) called "Capital Tonight."

Call it nitpicking on my part but shouldn't the title be spelled Capitol?

I've always thought that Capital refers to money or something financially-related, while Capitol refers to a city where state or federal lawmakers meet.

So am I right or wrong?

 

[tjdean]

For those of you who are on satellite or have OTA TV, there is a statewide political/news program that airs over YNN (owned by Time Warner) called "Capital Tonight."

Call it nitpicking on my part but shouldn't the title be spelled Capitol?

I've always thought that Capital refers to money or something financially-related, while Capitol refers to a city where state or federal lawmakers meet.

So am I right or wrong?

You're right.

 

[dhett]

If one is referring to the building that houses the government, then it would be "Capitol". If referring to the city that is the seat of government, then it is "Capital". Albany is the state capital of New York, but the legislature meets in the state capitol.

However, the larger point is that the show is devoted to the goings on of state government and not to the general news of the city of Albany, so you are correct in that it should be called "Capitol Tonight".

 

[BobRoss]

I was going to chime in on this and then I held back, but I'm changing my mind again.

One point that hasn't been brought up here is that the word "capital" has multiple definitions, beyond just being the city which serves as the seat of government. Other definitions include "most serious" and "chief in importance or influence."

So, I'm thinking YNN went with "Capital" because they want to create the impression that the show is serious, important, and influential. And even though it doesn't cover news about Albany the capital city, the show originates from Albany.

I could have sworn it used to be spelled "Capitol" back in the days when Brian Taffe hosted... but just ran a quick Google Images search and there are screen shots of the old logo, spelled "Capital." Never realized it until this thread came up... if you had asked me out of the blue, I'd have sworn up and down it was spelled with an O.

 

[THE_KNICKMAN]

My understanding from school many moons ago is that "Capitol" referred to the nations capitol, Washington, DC. "Capital" referred to state capitals. Capital as in money was a completely separate issue.