The diereses over the o (or any doubled letter) is an old-fashioned way of indicating a syllable break, rather than a longer vowel sound (as in “good”). It’s th

The diereses over the o (or any doubled letter) is an old-fashioned way of indicating a syllable break, rather than a longer vowel sound (as in “good”). It’s the New Yorker’s house style. Also, I don’t see any spelling mistakes in the sentence you mention...