Mignon Fogarty
AP Style Style Versus Rules
AP Style Why the AP Stylebook?
AP Style What are the key differences in AP style?
AP Style AP Style
— Does not use italics.
AP Style No Italics
This means most titles go in quotation marks.
AP Style Quotation Marks “Atomic Habits” (book) “Candy Crush”(computer game) “Jumanji” (movie) + opera titles, poem titles, album titles, song titles, TV show titles, and more
AP Style No Quotation Marks
— Holy Books (the Bible, the Quran)
— Reference Books (Webster’s New World College Dictionary, Garner’s Modern English Usage)
AP Style No Quotation Marks
— Newspaper and Magazine Names (The Washington Post, Reader’s Digest)
— Website and App Names (Yelp, Facebook)
— Board Games (Risk, Settlers of Catan)
AP Style Quotation Marks — Billy waited 30 seconds for “Magic the Gathering” to launch on his iPad.
— The boys meet every Saturday at the game store to play Magic the Gathering.
AP Style AP Style
— Does not use italics. — Doesn’t always use the serial comma.
AP Style Serial Comma
red, white, and blue
AP Style AP Style
red, white and blue
AP Style Serial Comma
Do use it when series elements contain conjunctions.
AP Style Serial Comma
— Peanut butter and jelly — Ham and eggs — Macaroni and cheese
AP Style AP Style
I like peanut butter and jelly, ham and eggs, and macaroni and cheese.
AP Style AP Style I like peanut butter and jelly, ham, and cheese.
AP Style Serial Comma
Do use it when series elements contain complex phrases.
AP Style AP Style
Squiggly wondered whether Aardvark had caught any fish, whether Aardvark would be home for dinner, and whether Aardvark would be in a good mood.
AP Style Serial Comma Do use it when it’s needed for clarity.
AP Style AP Style They invited the strippers, Stalin, and JFK.
AP Style AP Style
— Doesn’t use italics. — Doesn’t always use the serial comma. — Doesn’t use a final “s” for certain possessives.
AP Style Chicago Style
Jones’s slippers
Chicago Style AP Style
Jones’ slippers
Chicago Style AP Style
farmers market
Chicago Style AP Style
Headlines are sentence case and present tense.
AP Style Headlines Man makes sure to put phone on silent before misplacing it
AP Style Headlines Co-workers agog as employee introduces new shirt into rotation
AP Style AP Style — Headlines are sentence case and present tense. — Spell out only* numbers one through nine.
AP Style *Many exceptions. Numbers
one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine
10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16
AP Style AP Style
Puts spaces around dashes.
AP Style Dashes AP Jo — a Hawaiian — hates spam.
CHICAGO Jo—a Hawaiian—hates spam.
AP Style Summary
— AP doesn’t use italics. — AP doesn’t always use the serial comma. — AP doesn’t use a final “s” for certain possessives.
AP Style Summary
— Headlines are sentence case and present tense. — Spell out only* numbers one through nine.
AP Style *Many exceptions. Summary
— Puts spaces around dashes.
AP Style Poll #1
AP Style AP Bulleted Lists
— Use dashes instead of bullets. — Capitalize the first word after the dash. — Put a period at the end of each section.
AP Style AP Bulleted Lists
Key rules are: —Use dashes. — Capitalize the first word. — Use periods.
AP Style AP Bulleted Lists
Be parallel: —Use dashes. — Capitalize the first word. — Use periods.
AP Style AP Bulleted Lists How much responsibility can you handle?
— Dogs are for people who can walk them. — Cats are for people who have less time. — Cactuses are for people who travel a lot.
AP Style AP Bulleted Lists
How much responsibility can you handle?
— Dogs are for people who can walk them. — If you have less time, get a cat. — Cactuses are for people who travel a lot.
AP Style Poll #2
AP Style Headlines
AP Style Headlines
Residents report seeing unidentified flying objects over Seattle last night
AP Style Headlines
Southwest issues statement: No potbelly pigs allowed on flights
AP Style Headline Southwest issues statement: No more potbelly pigs Body Copy Southwest made its stance clear: no more potbelly pigs.
AP Style Headline Southwest issues statement: No more potbelly pigs Body Copy Southwest made its stance clear: no more potbelly pigs.
AP Style Body Copy
Southwest issues statement: No potbelly pigs allowed on flights
Southwest issues statement: no more potbelly pigs
AP Style Headline
Southwest issues statement: No potbelly pigs allowed on flights
Southwest issues statement: No more potbelly pigs
AP Style Poll #3
AP Style Body Copy: Numbers
one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine
10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16
AP Style Headlines: Numbers
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16
AP Style HEADLINES
7 ways to top a potato
Smith gets 3 years in prison
AP Style Headlines 7 ways to top a potato Body Copy Seven potatoes sat on the countertop.
AP Style HEADLINES
7 ways to top a potato
Smith gets 3 years in prison
AP Style Big Numbers: Headlines
Happify raises $5 million in convertible debt
Happify raises $5M in convertible debt
AP Style Big Numbers: Headlines
Deutsche Bank hit with $2.5B fine due to rate rigging
AP Style Headlines Happify raises $5M in convertible debt Body Copy Happify raised $5 million in convertible debt.
AP Style Quotation Marks: Headlines
‘Kayaktivists’ in Seattle bay protest Arctic drilling
AP Style Quotation Marks: Headlines
Which ‘Outlander’ character is your soulmate?
AP Style Abbreviations: Headlines
US and UK leaders meet at the UN
AP Style Headlines US and UK leaders meet at the UN Body Copy U.S. and U.K. leaders met at the U.N.
AP Style Abbreviations: Headlines
US and UK leaders meet at the UN
AP Style Headlines Q1, Q2, Q3, and Q4
AP Style Headlines Q1, Q2, Q3, and Q4 Body Copy first quarter, etc.
AP Style Headlines
US worker productivity slumped again in Q1
AP Style Poll #4
AP Style Capitalization:General Rules
Capitalize: Proper Nouns and Words Derived from Proper Nouns
AP Style Capitalization: General Rules
Capitalize: Proper Nouns and Words Derived from Proper Nouns
Mignon and Kyle.
AP Style Capitalization: General Rules
Capitalize: Proper Nouns and Words Derived from Proper Nouns
Mignon and Kyle. Colorado River.
AP Style Capitalization: General Rules
Capitalize: Proper Nouns and Words Derived from Proper Nouns
Mignon and Juston. Colorado River. English and Shakespearean.
AP Style Capitalization: General Rules
Capitalize: Proper Nouns and Words Derived from Proper Nouns
Mignon and Juston. Colorado River. English and Shakespearean. French dressing (but french fries)
AP Style Capitalization: General Rules
Capitalize: Proper Nouns and Words Derived from Proper Nouns
Mignon and Juston. Colorado River. English and Shakespearean. French dressing (but french fries) West Street.
AP Style Aside
Numbers in street names follow the general rules for numbers.
First Street through Ninth Street. 10th Street, 23rd Avenue, etc.
AP Style Capitalization: Titles
Capitalize when they come before the name
Governor Andrew Cuomo former President Jimmy Carter Pope Francis
AP Style Capitalization: Titles
Lowercase when they come after the name or are used alone or descriptively.
She is running for president. The president is out of the country. The vice president, Kamala Harris, breaks ties in the Senate. The pope gave his blessing.
AP Style Capitalization: Location Nicknames
the Twin Cities region the West Bank the Sunshine State the South Side (of Chicago) the Lower East Side (of New York) the Bronx
AP Style Poll #5
AP Style PRONOUNS
This is an active area of language change.
AP Style PRONOUNS
A zookeeper must protect his animals.
AP Style PRONOUNS
Zookeepers must protect their animals.
AP Style PRONOUNS
A zookeeper must protect the animals.
AP Style PRONOUNS
The victim will be identified after his or her relatives are notified.
AP Style PRONOUNS
The victim will be identified after relatives are notified.
The name of the victim will be released after relatives are notified.
AP Style PRONOUNS
The person feared for their safety and spoke on condition of anonymity.
AP Style PRONOUNS
People who don’t identify as male or female
AP Style PRONOUNS
AP allows the singular “they,” but does not use newer pronouns such as “xe” or “ze.”
AP Style PRONOUNS
In stories about people who identify as neither male nor female or ask not to be referred to as he/she/him/her: Use the person's name in place of a pronoun, or otherwise reword the sentence, whenever possible. If they/them/their use is essential, explain in the text that the person prefers a gender-neutral pronoun. Be sure that the phrasing does not imply more than one person.
AP Style PRONOUNS
“Rory, who uses the pronoun ‘they,’ said they support the bill.”
https://www.nlgja.org/stylebook/pronoun-use-for-transgender-sources/
AP Style PRONOUNS
When using the singular “they,” use a plural verb.
AP Style PRONOUNS
Rory, who uses the pronoun “they,” said they support the bill.
AP Style PRONOUNS
Taylor said they need a new car.
AP Style PRONOUNS
Taylor said they need a new car. Taylor needs a new car. Taylor reports needing a new car.
AP Style PRONOUNS “You” is singular and plural, but always takes a plural verb.
AP Style PRONOUNS You are my plus-one for the wedding.
You are all invited to the wedding.
AP Style PRONOUNS: SUMMARY • Rewrite. • Use singular “they” (and “themself”) as a last resort. • Pair singular “they” with a plural verb. • Do not use “xe,” “ze,” etc.
AP Style Poll #6
AP Style COMPANIES styling
AP Style AP Style Yahoo reported its earnings.
E-trade notified the traders.
Ikea invited me to live in its store.
AP Style AP Style BMW previewed its 2022 models.
UBS profit nearly doubled.
AP Style AP Style AP Style After I lost my iPad, I bought an iPhone on eBay.
AP Style IPhones are expensive.
EBay was at the only place I could afford one.
AP Style Shares of Twitter Inc. fell 18%.
AP Style Twitter Inc.’s shares fell 18%.
Starbucks Corp.’s earnings report will be released next week.
AP Style McDonald’s statement placated the protestors.
AP Style McDonald’s issued a statement that placated the protestors.
The statement issued by McDonald’s placated the protestors.
AP Style COMPANIES ✤ It ✤ No fancy symbols ✤ Camel case: not at the beginning of a sentence
AP Style COMPANIES ✤ Tw i t t e r I n c. ✤ Tw i t t e r I n c.’s l o g o ✤ McDonald’s logo ✤ The Home Depot Inc.
AP Style Poll #7
AP Style RECENT CHANGES: PERCENTS
“Use the % sign when paired with a numeral, with no space, in most cases.”
AP Style RECENT CHANGES: PERCENTS
With only 4% of precincts reporting…
AP Style RECENT CHANGES: PERCENTS (exceptions)
He has zero percent chance of winning.
AP Style RECENT CHANGES: WORDS TO AVOID
Suspect
AP Style RECENT CHANGES: WORDS TO AVOID
Police are looking for the suspect. Police are looking for the robber.
AP Style RECENT CHANGES
“Data” is typically singular except in scientific and academic writing.
AP Style RECENT CHANGES
The data are compelling.
The data is compelling.
AP Style RECENT CHANGES
No hyphen in —African American —Asian American
AP Style RACE
An African American is not the same thing as a black American. It refers only to someone of African descent. Some black people are Caribbean Americans, for example.
Follow the person’s preference, if known.
AP Stylebook RECENT CHANGES AND NEW WORDS
over (to mean “more than”)
AP Style RECENT CHANGES AND NEW WORDS
Beginning a sentence with a numeral-and- letter combination is now allowed:
3D movies are drawing more fans.
AP Style RECENT CHANGES AND NEW WORDS
Both “pled” and “pleaded” are now fine.
Squiggly pleaded guilty. Squiggly pled guilty.
AP Style RECENT CHANGES
fire names
AP Style RECENT CHANGES
“the deadly fire burning near San Diego.”
AP Style Mignon Fogarty
QuickAndDirtyTips.com
AP Style Questions
AP Style