The AP Stylebook and Briefing on Media Law is an essential handbook for all writers and editors. The AP Stylebook and Briefing on Media Law is an essential handbook for all writers, editors, students and public relations specialists.
* The spiral-bound 2016 edition of The Associated Press Stylebook and Briefing on Media Law includes nearly 250 new or revised entries – including lowercase internet and web – and the first interior page redesign in decades.
At about 600 pages, the AP Stylebook is widely used as a writing and editing reference in newsrooms, classrooms and corporate offices worldwide. Updated regularly since its initial publication in 1953, the AP Stylebook provides fundamental guidelines for spelling, language, punctuation, usage and journalistic style. It is the definitive resource for journalists.
* AP Stylebook Online is a Web-bas
At about 600 pages, the AP Stylebook is widely used as a writing and editing reference in newsrooms, classrooms and corporate offices worldwide. Updated regularly since its initial publication in 1953, the AP Stylebook provides fundamental guidelines for spelling, language, punctuation, usage and journalistic style. It is the definitive resource for journalists.
* AP Stylebook Online is a Web-bas
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We use a slash, rather than a hyphen, for constructions such as and/or, either/or, over/under, red state/blue state, etc. No space on either side of the slash.
To break up lines of a verse, use a slash with a space on each side:
Row, row, row your boat / Gently down the stream
To avoid any suggestion that someone is being judged before a trial, do not use a phrase such as "sued for malfeasance." Instead, say the lawsuit "accuses her of malfeasance" or "he was named in a lawsuit accusing him of libel."
Noisome means offensive, noxious. Noisy means clamorous.
Use an s without an apostrophe to indicate spans of decades or centuries: the 1890s, the 1800s.
Years are an exception to the general AP style rule that a figure is not used to start a sentence: 2020 was a difficult year.
Capitalize U.S. Supreme Court and also the Supreme Court when the context makes the U.S. designation unnecessary.
For example: The U.S. Supreme Court will be back in session in October. The Supreme Court is in recess.
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Our guidance: The uppercase Deaf is acceptable, if used by a person or group, in descriptions such as the cultural Deaf community, Deaf education, Deaf culture, etc. When relevant, we use lowercase deaf for the audiological condition and for people with that condition.
We prefer the word people to persons. For example: Thousands of people attended the fair. There were 17 people in the room. When relevant, use more specific wording. For example: U.S. adults; likely voters in Ghana’s presidential election; Chinese American college students.
A bear market is a period of generally declining stock prices over a prolonged period, generally defined as a 20% or larger decline in broad stock indexes such as the S&P 500.
Our AP Stylebook Online Topical Guide about the financial markets:
http://apne.ws/l2Eocj3
Growing numbers of people use they/them/their as a gender-neutral singular personal pronoun. As much as possible, AP also uses they/them/their as a way of accurately describing and representing a person who uses those pronouns for themself.
If you are a college instructor and require the AP Stylebook for your class, we offer both the print book and Stylebook Online to support your teaching.
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For times, we use figures except for noon and midnight: 11 a.m. Use a colon to separate hours from minutes: 3:30 p.m. Avoid such redundancies as 10 a.m. this morning, 10 p.m. tonight or 10 p.m. Monday night. Use 10 a.m. Monday, etc.
Our style: OK, OK'd, OK'ing, OKs. We don't use okay. As for the postal code OK, we use postal codes only in complete addresses that include the ZIP code. Otherwise, Okla. for the abbreviation in datelines. Spell out Oklahoma and other state names in stories. OK?
Cliches are the junk food of the literary pantry, much loved by lazy writers. But platitudes and worn phrases serve as signals to the reader to move along, there’s nothing to see here.
Don’t push readers away, or lull them to sleep. Engage them with original, specific phrasing.
We share daily AP style tips here and some of them generate a lot of conversation.
Check out some of our tweets that have gotten the most engagement:
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We don't use the terms illegal immigrant, unauthorized immigrant, irregular migrant, alien, an illegal, illegals or undocumented (except when quoting people or documents that use these terms). Many immigrants and migrants have some sort of documents, but not the necessary ones.
Our AP Stylebook Online Topical Guide about the financial markets provides guidance for writing about the stock market and the economy.
Inflation is one term you'll find in the guide, which is available to all users here:
http://apne.ws/fDihdX8
Disabled people are not monolithic. They use diverse terms to describe themselves. Many, for example, use the term people with disabilities. Both people with disabilities and disabled people are acceptable terms, but try to determine the preference of a person or group.
What's new in the AP Stylebook, 56th Edition?
- An inclusive storytelling chapter.
- An expanded religion chapter.
- A revised social media chapter.
- New guidance on writing about disabilities.
- Expanded guidance on cannabis.
And much more.
Buy yours: http://apne.ws/Nt5nJCv
We don't use the word cocktail in reference to a mixture of drugs. Instead: drug combination or simply drugs or medications. For example, HIV drugs or execution drugs.
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We use the spelling "flyer" for a person flying in an aircraft, and for handbills: He used his frequent flyer miles; they put up flyers announcing the show. We use "flier" in the phrase "take a flier," meaning to take a big risk.
The Stylebook's weapons entry offers guidance on terms including semi-automatic rifle, assault rifle, assault weapon, military-style rifle and modern sporting rifle.
Flair is conspicuous talent or style.
Flare is a verb meaning to blaze with sudden, bright light, to burst out in anger, or to curve or spread outward. It is also a noun meaning a flame.
Generally, use a hyphen in modifiers of three or more words: a know-it-all attitude, black-and-white photography, a sink-or-swim moment, a win-at-all-costs approach. Consider carefully, though, before deciding to use more than three modifiers.
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At the end of your free trial, we will ask you if you would like to continue your service so you can keep any of the custom entries you created on Stylebook Online. We hope you will find the service valuable enough that you won't want to give up the help staying in style.
We capitalize formal titles used directly before a name: Mayor Jo Hays. Lowercase a title when standing alone: The mayor rides a bike to work. Also lowercase titles in constructions that set them off from a name by commas: The mayor, Jo Hays, rides a bike to work.
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We're here to help.
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Use this style of uppercase and lowercase for amendments to the U.S. Constitution: the First Amendment guarantee of free speech, the Eighth Amendment prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment.
Avoid the word casualties, which can refer to either injuries or deaths. If authorities use it, seek specifics. If specifics aren’t available, say so: Officer Riya Kumar said the crash resulted in casualties, but she said she did not know whether those were injuries or deaths.
If you know just where to find what you need in your print Stylebook, but you also want the latest in AP style: When you buy your spiral-bound AP Stylebook on apstylebook.com, you can sign up for our update emails when Stylebook editors add or change guidance.
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We have a new Stylebook Online entry: Czechia, the Czech Republic.
Both are acceptable. The shorter name Czechia is preferred by the Czech government. If using Czechia, clarify in the story that the country is more widely known in English as the Czech Republic.
Hyphenate up-to-date as a compound modifier before a noun: We bring you the most up-to-date news. Otherwise, no hyphen: Stay up to date with Stylebook Online. My calendar is up to date.
When you have a question about writing or editing, turn to the AP Stylebook Online search function.
You will often get multiple related results. Check out a few to see if you get more context on your question.
Learn more about Stylebook Online:
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We now have an entry called “marijuana, cannabis.”
It includes definitions for cannabinoids, decriminalization, delta, edibles, hemp and 420, among other related terms.
You can find this in the new AP Stylebook, 56th Edition, and on AP Stylebook Online.
AP Stylebook updated their info in the about section.
Our friends at Ragan Communications are hosting a webinar this afternoon on what's new in AP style, featuring Stylebook editor Paula Froke.
It's not too late to register! Use this link for special pricing: https://na.eventscloud.com/ereg/index.php?eventid=688345&discountcode=APS269
Event log-in instructions will be sent
We don't use the terms illegal immigrant, unauthorized immigrant, irregular migrant, alien, an illegal, illegals or undocumented (except when quoting people or documents that use these terms). Many immigrants and migrants have some sort of documents, but not the necessary ones.
Acceptable variations include living in or entering a country illegally or without legal permission. For people: immigrants lacking permanent legal status. The European Union and some U.N. agencies use the term irregular migration; that term is acceptable in areas where it is commonly used. Do not use irregular migrants.
When space is a consideration, such as in a headline, simply migrant(s) or immigrant(s) is acceptable as long as the context is clear in the first few paragraphs of the story.
If you want the helpful spiral binding so your print Stylebook stays open to the page you need, the only place to buy the new AP Stylebook, 56th Edition, is on apstylebook.com.
Use spongy moth for the invasive pest formerly known as gypsy moth, a change approved by the Entomological Society of America in 2022. Gypsy moth is acceptable in a first reference explaining the new name until it becomes better known: spongy moths, formerly known as gypsy moths.
From our race-related coverage entry: In all coverage ... strive to accurately represent the world, or a particular community, and its diversity through the people you quote and depict in all formats. Omissions and lack of inclusion can render people invisible.
AP Stylebook Online subscribers love our search function.
You can look for exactly what you need without knowing what entry or chapter your answer is in.
You might even find AP style rules you didn't know existed.
Learn more about Stylebook Online:
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We have expanded and updated our guidance on writing about disabilities.
You can find this new entry on the terms brain injury, traumatic brain injury, brain damage and brain-damaged on AP Stylebook Online and in the new AP Stylebook, 56th Edition.
Lowercase and spell out titles in constructions that set them off from a name by commas: The U.S. vice president, Kamala Harris, was elected in 2020. Pope Francis, the current pope, was born in Argentina.
Ask the Editor is one of the most popular features of AP Stylebook Online.
Editor Paula Froke responds to a wide range of questions from Stylebook Online subscribers.
Check out highlights of some recent replies:
http://apne.ws/XRc46dV
Ask the Editor is a forum on writing, style and phrasing issues that go beyond the pages of the AP Stylebook. AP Stylebook editor Paula Froke fields questions posed by subscribers to AP Stylebook Online. Below is a sampling of recent questions Paula has answered.
Sunday is Juneteenth, the traditional June 19 commemoration date of the emancipation of enslaved people in the U.S. On June 17, 2021, President Biden signed legislation making it a U.S. federal holiday. The holiday also has been called Juneteenth Independence Day or Freedom Day.
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Do you want to stay up to date as our editors add and update guidance on AP Stylebook Online?
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Our inclusive storytelling chapter says: People of any race are capable of racist behavior and assumptions (both explicit and implicit). Both women and men are capable of sexist assumptions. Older adults may view younger people through a lens of ageism, as well as vice versa.
Avoid the terms child-free and childless other than in direct quotes essential to the story. They may be viewed as loaded or demeaning.
If you must mention a newsmaker’s parental status and if it is relevant, use a neutral description such as "has no children."
In general, we spell out numbers at the start of a sentence: Forty years was a long time to wait. An exception is years: 1992 was a very good year. Another exception: Numeral(s) and letter(s) combinations: 401(k) plans are offered. 3D movies are drawing more fans.
ICYMI, here are some of our most popular AP style tips from the last year:
http://apne.ws/h4mdN8N
No, ICYMI is not in the Stylebook as shorthand for "in case you missed it." Sometimes even the Stylebook bends the rules.
More from our disabilities guidance: Don’t limit coverage of disabled people to coverage of disabilities. People with disabilities are experts in as many fields as nondisabled people are. Include their voices and their images in your regular coverage of any topic.
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If you’re covering the NCAA Tournament championship game, let Oskar Garcia, AP Stylebook team member and assistant sports editor, demonstrate a 3-pointer from San Antonio. For more basketball terms, check out our Stylebook Online Topical Guide: http://apne.ws/jAyCZSE
AP Stylebook editors have made hundreds of changes in recent years. Some are high profile, many are not. Are you using the latest AP style guidance? http://apne.ws/4mRtbse
AP Stylebook editors have added several new chapters in recent years, including food, fashion, religion, social media and data journalism. Are you keeping up with the latest AP style guidance? http://apne.ws/YYS8SRg
