AP Style Blog
by Nicole Meir on Aug. 17, 2023
Guidance on how to cover artificial intelligence and 10 key AI terms were added today to the AP Stylebook, to help journalists accurately explain the potential, inherent risks and varying effects of AI and generative AI models. The guidance advises journalists to avoid language that attributes human characteristics to these systems – or uses gendered pronouns – and remember that such systems are built by people with their own human biases and aims. New entries available today on AP Stylebook Online include: [more...]
by Nicole Meir, media relations manager on April 18, 2022
During a panel at the ACES: The Society for Editing national conference in San Antonio, Texas, on Saturday, Stylebook editor Paula Froke announced that the latest edition of AP Stylebook will include a new chapter on inclusive storytelling. The guidance is immediately available to AP Stylebook Online subscribers and will be included in the new print edition of the Stylebook, set to be published on June 1. The new inclusive storytelling chapter emphasizes the importance of inclusive reporting and editing in ensuring [more...]
by John Daniszewski, Vice President for Standards on Jan. 6, 2021
Colleagues, We are being questioned about the correct language to apply to the protesters backing President Donald Trump in Washington and the dramatic events taking place today at the U.S. Capitol. AP style in the event of civil disturbances allows editors and journalists to choose the term that in their judgment best applies. So far, our main story has spoken of a “chaotic protest aimed at thwarting a peaceful transfer of power,” a “melee” and a “raucous, out-of-control scene.” MOB, RIOT OR [more...]
by John Daniszewski, Vice President for Standards on July 20, 2020
AP style will continue to lowercase the term white in racial, ethnic and cultural senses. This decision follows our move last month to capitalize Black in such uses. We consulted with a wide group of people internally and externally around the globe and considered a variety of commentary in making these decisions. There was clear desire and reason to capitalize Black. Most notably, people who are Black have strong historical and cultural commonalities, even if they are from different parts of the world and even if [more...]
by John Daniszewski on June 19, 2020
We are today making an important change to AP style that stems from a long and fruitful conversation among news leaders, editors and diverse members of our staff and external groups and organizations. AP’s style is now to capitalize Black in a racial, ethnic or cultural sense, conveying an essential and shared sense of history, identity and community among people who identify as Black, including those in the African diaspora and within Africa. The lowercase black is a color, not a person. A man carries a [more...]
by Lauren Easton, director of media relations on March 29, 2019
The guidance is immediately available to AP Stylebook Online subscribers and will be included in the new print edition of the Stylebook when it is published on May 29. The additions include: A new entry covering the terms “racist/racism.” Guidance not to use “racially charged” or similar terms as euphemisms for “racist” or “racism” when the latter terms are applicable. Guidance not to use the term “black” or “white” in the singular as a noun, and to limit the use of the terms “blacks” and “whites” as plurals. The [more...]
by John Daniszewski, vice president for standards on June 13, 2018
AP policy on reporting suicides, spelled out in the AP Stylebook, is “to not go into detail on the methods used.” There has been a robust discussion in our newsrooms about what this means — how far do we go in discussing methods of suicide by celebrities? Are we depriving readers of essential information on a story if we are too opaque? We tend to be news purists in the AP. Our instinct is to publish all the news for our audience to absorb, use and act upon. But reporting on suicide, like reporting on [more...]
by Lauren Easton, director of media relations on April 17, 2018
The 2018 AP Stylebook will include a new chapter on polls and surveys, adding details to help journalists report responsibly on public opinion research heading into the U.S. midterm elections. The new chapter, available immediately to AP Stylebook Online subscribers, leads with longstanding guidance that the mere existence of a poll is not enough to make news. It adds that “poll results that seek to preview the outcome of an election must never be the lead, headline or single subject of any story.” Deputy Managing [more...]
by John Daniszewski, vice president for standards on Nov. 21, 2017
With the raft of accusations of sexual misconduct by powerful men showing no signs of abating, here are some guidelines that may prove useful. “Sexual harassment” has a particular legal meaning. It is, per Webster’s New World College Dictionary, “inappropriate, unwelcome, and, typically, persistent behavior, as by an employer or co-worker, that is sexual in nature, specifically when actionable under federal or state statutes.” While that definition is broad, encompassing many kinds of misbehavior, the word “ [more...]
by John Daniszewski, vice president for standards on Sept. 6, 2017
With the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program in the news, members of the public, TV commentators and politicians are commonly referring to the program’s beneficiaries as “Dreamers.” This is a framing that tends to elicit positive feelings for the young beneficiaries and their quest for legal protection to live in the United States. AP policy is to use “Dreamers” only in direct quotes or with quote marks for the purpose of explaining the term, such as, “They are commonly referred to as ‘Dreamers,’ [more...]
by John Daniszewski, vice president for standards on Aug. 16, 2017
UPDATED Aug. 16: We are adding “anti-Semitism” to the definition of “alt-right”; noting that the antifa movement that has been recently in the news actually has antecedents back to the 1930s; and adding some guidance on spelling and punctuation on the recently coined term “alt-left.” The post below includes these updates. The events in Charlottesville are an opportunity to take another look at our terminology around “alt-right” and the way that we describe the various racist, neo-Nazi, white nationalist and white [more...]
by Lauren Easton, director of media relations on June 26, 2017
With a new data journalism chapter in the 2017 AP Stylebook, journalists across all beats are able to obtain guidance on acquiring, evaluating, reproducing and reporting on data. Interactive Newsroom Technology Editor Troy Thibodeaux, who oversaw the chapter, explains why data skills are essential for every reporter. Interactive Newsroom Technology Editor Troy Thibodeaux. (AP Photo) What is the role of data journalism today? How has it evolved? Data journalism has evolved from a rarefied skill set that only [more...]
by Lauren Easton, director of media relations on March 24, 2017
During a panel at the American Copy Editors Society national conference in St. Petersburg, Florida, on Friday, it was announced that the 2017 AP Stylebook will include guidance on the limited use of “they” as a singular pronoun. The addition is immediately available to AP Stylebook Online subscribers and will be included in the new print edition of the Stylebook when it is published on May 31. Key passages from the new entry include: They, them, their — In most cases, a plural pronoun should agree in number with the [more...]
by John Daniszewski, vice president for standards on Nov. 28, 2016
Recent developments have put the so-called “alt-right” movement in the news. They highlight the need for clarity around use of the term and around some related terms, such as “white nationalism” and “white supremacism.” Let’s tackle them. The “alt-right” or “alternative right” is a name currently embraced by some white supremacists and white nationalists to refer to themselves and their ideology, which emphasizes preserving and protecting the white race in the United States in addition to, or over, other traditional [more...]
by Lauren Easton, director of media relations on April 2, 2016
During a panel at the American Copy Editors Society national conference in Portland, Oregon, on Saturday, it was announced that the 2016 AP Stylebook will lowercase the words ‘internet’ and ‘web.’ The changes will take effect when the new print edition of the Stylebook is published on June 1. Previewing the new edition at the ACES conference, Standards Editor Thomas Kent highlighted a few of the added entries, including the shortest Stylebook item, ‘L,’ now acceptable when referring to the Chicago Transit Authority [more...]
by Paul Colford, former vice president of media relations on Sept. 22, 2015
The AP Stylebook editors today informed AP staff about a change to the entry on global warming. In addition, they described what goes into keeping the Stylebook up-to-date, including their outreach to experts. AP science writer Seth Borenstein was among those who provided guidance during the discussion that resulted in today’s change, which adds two sentences to the global warming entry. Here is the staff memo from Stylebook editors Sally Jacobsen, Dave Minthorn and Paula Froke: We have reviewed our entry on global [more...]
by Erin Madigan White, former senior media relations manager on Dec. 16, 2014
As food editor, J.M. Hirsch keeps The Associated Press’ global coverage of cooking and eating relevant, accessible and authoritative. He’s also the expert behind the popular food chapter of the AP Stylebook. Here, he explains what coverage AP served up to Lifestyles subscribers for the holidays and what to watch for in the new year. What are the highlights of AP’s holiday coverage? For AP’s food team, the holidays start in July. That’s when we start dreaming up delicious things for an entire season of holidays. From [more...]
by Erin Madigan White, former senior media relations manager on Aug. 22, 2013
The Associated Press will henceforth use Pvt. Chelsea E. Manning and female pronouns for the soldier formerly known as Bradley Manning, in accordance with her wishes to live as a woman. Manning announced her wishes last Thursday after being sentenced to 35 years in Fort Leavenworth military prison and a dishonorable discharge from the U.S. Army for revealing U.S. secrets to WikiLeaks, the anti-establishment website. Manning’s statement was reiterated, with additional detail, in a blog posting ( [more...]
by Paul Colford. former vice president of media relations on April 2, 2013
The AP Stylebook today is making some changes in how we describe people living in a country illegally. Senior Vice President and Executive Editor Kathleen Carroll explains the thinking behind the decision: The Stylebook no longer sanctions the term 「illegal immigrant」 or the use of 「illegal」 to describe a person. Instead, it tells users that 「illegal」 should describe only an action, such as living in or immigrating to a country illegally. Why did we make the change? The discussions on this topic have been [more...]
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