Who Gives a F*ck about an Oxford Comma?

Like most editors, I have big opinions about tiny details. One opinion that I used to have is that the Oxford comma is absolutely necessary. It's just a comma between the last two items of a list; it's not that difficult to add! There's a comma between every other item! It's consistent! It's clarifying! And, besides, who hasn't seen one of those comics that makes fun of a sentence without the Oxford comma?

But my opinion changed when I started working with Spectrum journal during my BA. One of my fellow editors always poked gentle fun at how much I enjoyed copy editing and proofreading. Most of the editorial team wanted to help authors reword for clarity or provide new ideas for the article's structure. I liked those things too, but I was most interested in double-checking spellings (analyze or analyse?) and punctuation. Why, this fellow editor wanted to know, did the Oxford comma really matter?

And that's how I started listening to Vampire Weekend's "Oxford Comma" every time I was editing. The first line always got me: "Who gives a f*ck about an Oxford comma? I've seen those English dramas too, they're cruel." This song lightened me up, helping me see how I could make sense of others' lists even if they didn't have the Oxford comma. I could trust readers to understand what the author was saying, even if the comma wasn't there to guide them. The text could be accessible whether or not the Oxford comma was there.

(The music video for Vampire Weekend's "Oxford Comma," from their 2008 album Vampire Weekend)

So, do I give a f*ck about an Oxford comma? When I'm editing others' work, my main goal is to provide consistency. If every list in their text doesn't use the Oxford comma, why should I add it? But, if some lists do and others don't, that's an exciting opportunity to discuss the options with the author. Writing consultation can give us an opportunity to discuss the pros and cons of the comma, and copy editing or proofreading give me time to look through the text and make sure that each list is taken into account. Whether or not the Oxford comma is there, if it's consistent throughout the text, the whole piece will become clear and easy for readers to access.