Both the ap stylebook and the buzzfeed style guide already recommend spelling email without the hyphen. States should also be abbreviated when used as part ofa shortformpolitical affiliation. Associated press style cheat sheet compiled with assistance from online resources, including scribd, purdue university and towson university abbreviations and acronyms as a general rule, use only commonly recognized abbreviations. You should always spell out alaska, hawaii, idaho, iowa, maine, ohio, texas, and utah. All you need to know about titles in ap style gatehouse. Mar 14, 2015 ap style for states abbreviations march 14, 2015 a. Whether within the newsroom or in conversations with clients, citation of ap stylebook entries regularly settles editorial. Its conceivable that over time, ebook may lose its hyphen. In this post, we will summarize all of the ap stylebook state abbreviations rules. Im writing feature articles and trying to adhere to ap style, but im not sure how to attribute a source. Whether within the newsroom or in conversations with clients, citation of ap stylebook entries regularly settles editorial debates about spelling and formatting. The associated press style for the em dash uses a space on either side to set it off. Abbreviate state names of seven or more letters when used with a city name, with commas.
Even though the question of how to abbreviate the united states seems straightforward, as it happens, theres more than one preferred way to write it. Thewildfire began incalifornia and moved east toward carson city,nev. The associated press has been breaking news since 1846. Associated press issues new guidance on sex, gender.
To subscribe to the associated press stylebook online, or to find out about purchasing hard copies of the book, start here. So, i am providing a reference for those who may be interested. Alaska, hawaii, idaho, iowa, maine, ohio, texas and utah. State abbreviations ap doesnt follow standard zip code abbreviations. Associated press ap citation and style guides libguides. If a state s name is standing alone or in conjunction with a city or town in your text, spell out the entire state s name. Ap stylebook online is a searchable, customizable resource for writers and editors. Here is how each state is abbreviated in ap style with the postal code. Mastering the ap style rules for abbreviations bka content. Select the sentence free of errors in ap style for abbreviations for print publications. Ap books ap stylebook 2017 ap stylebook 2017 and briefing on media law. The best ap style cheat sheet every writer needs free download.
Fully revised and updated, this new edition contains more than 3,000 a to z entries including more than 200 new ones detailing the ap s rules on grammar, spelling, punctuation, capitalization. Its updated throughout the year and valuable onlineonly resources, including ask the editor, topical guides and pronunciation guide, expand on the print books guidance. As the foundation for journalistic writing, this style focuses on achieving the best possible accuracy and consistency to make content easily read and understood by readers. Published jun 19, 2017 consistency is essential to our profession and ap stylebook helps ensure uniformity throughout our worldwide distribution. The ap stylebook uses websters new world college dictionary, fifth. The best ap style cheat sheet every writer needs free. This is intended as a quick rundown or cheat sheet. Jack gillespie, rowan university, purdue university writing lab and ap stylebook page 1 ap stylebook guidelines the ap style items below represent the journalistic style errors most often found in news stories. Use quotation marks around the titles of books, songs, television shows, computer. How to do a footnote using the associated press style pen. Jun 15, 2009 note that if youre only going to use an unfamiliar acronym once, its best just to spell out the original term completely and forgo the abbreviated form.
Sep 20, 2015 the associated press stylebook and briefing on media law is available for the first time as an interactive ebook, making the nations leading resource for newsroom style easier to use. While the associated press style guide gives guidance on how to cite sources used within articles, it does not indicate guidelines for using footnotes, since footnotes do not typically. For composition titles such as books, video games, films, tv shows, works of art. If you want to know all about the ap style state abbreviations, you have been a wise soul to click on this article. Note that if youre only going to use an unfamiliar acronym once, its best just to spell out the original term completely and forgo the abbreviated form. We do not use other genderneutral pronouns such as xe or ze.
Associated press style is one of the most commonly used writing style guides in the united states, used primarily by journalists. Do not capitalize federal, state, department, division, board, program, section, unit. Currently, most state names are abbreviated in stories. Before we begin to enlist the abbreviations, it is mandatory for one to learn and garner information about what ap is, with a brief, supplementary note on the history of the same. Its often used by news organizations, magazines, and web publications, but brands often use it to form the basis of their own style guides, too.
On wednesday, professor james currier, who has a doctorate in biology and a masters in economics, will argue that improving automobile fuel efficiency from an average of 17 to 22 miles per gallon would save billions of dollars and protect endangered. Choose from 196 different sets of state abbreviations ap style flashcards on quizlet. Professional journalists and business communicators in the united states commonly write in associated press ap style. Books and magazines often italicize newspaper names as well as book titles and magazine names as part of their inhouse style. Jul 21, 2016 im a huge fan of abbreviations because they make communication easier and spare me from unnecessary typing. The ap stylebook 2 print edition, webbased access and stylechecking software. Which cities dont need a state abbreviation in ap style. Some state names are not abbreviated because they have six or fewer letters. This can be particularly tricky with the titles of major works, so heres a few rules to brush up on. What are the ap, apa, chicago, and mla writing styles.
The ap stylebook 2 print edition, webbased access and style checking software. There are eight states that should never be abbreviated in text or datelines. Spell out the names of the 50 states when they stand alone in. In ap style, the names of newspapers and magazines are not italicized or set off in quotation marks. Get your the smart writers simple ap style cheat sheet guide now. In general, newspaper style guides in the united states in particular, the associated press stylebook ap and the new york times manual of style and usage recommend u. Ap definitive source a new look for ap stylebook online. Associated press website faq this faq webpage from the ap is a great source of information on current issues of grammar, style, punctuation, abbreviations, and other style questions. This faq webpage from the ap is a great source of information on current issues of grammar, style, punctuation, abbreviations, and other style questions. Most people who are familiar with ap style know the common rules such as which months are abbreviated, how datelines are used and when to spell out numbers. State abbreviations in ap style differ from the twoletter zip code abbreviations. Here is how each state is abbreviated in ap style with the postal code abbreviations in parentheses. Those are alaska, hawaii, idaho, iowa, maine, ohio, texas and utah. Test your knowledge of ap style and usage with 90 multiplechoice quizzes as many times as you like.
Ap style recommends spelling out state names in the body of stories effective may 1, 2014 and using abbreviations in datelines. How to do a footnote using the associated press style. It wasnt about my prose, reporting, or lede, but that i neglected to abbreviate september. The spiralbound 2016 stylebooks isbn number is 9780917360633. Sometimes its difficult to remember which rules are ap and which rules are remnants from years of college courses. Twelve common mistakes of ap style apr 19, 2011 admin. Im familiar with academic citation apa, mla, but have never done this in journalism.
Withthe ap stylebook in hand, you can learn how to write and edit with the clarity and professionalism for which they are famous. Use abbreviations for degrees only when you need to include a list of credentials after a name. In addition to an enhanced home page that features style tips and stylebook events, the site. Although it is sold as a guide for reporters, it has become the leading reference for most forms of publicfacing corporate. Road and other related causeways such as court, drive, lane, way, etc. In this quick guide to state abbreviations, i will cover the differences between ap style and chicago style andjust to prolong your state of confusionwhen to use the common twoletter abbreviations created by the united states postal service if youre writing a research paper or dashing off a blog post, you can probably ignore all the exceptions and special cases and just lean on. Should the names of decades be capitalized when written out. Associated press stylebook 2015 and briefing on media law. These are the rules for common abbreviations following ap style.
Colon capitalize the first word after a colon only if it is a proper noun or the start of a complete sentence. Learn state abbreviations ap style with free interactive flashcards. The associated press stylebook and briefing on media law official style guide of the associated press, a notforprofit news agency thats been around since 1846. Ap stylebook adds ebook edition to digital product suite. Before we get into the differences between these four writing styles, we should explain them all a little more. I remember when i filed one of my first bylines for a newspaper only to get my inbox slammed with emails from my editor in chief. A primer on ap style t he ap stylebook is the second most important book you will use as a journalist, after a dictionary. Al for alabama alaska ak this state is not abbreviated in text ariz. Ap stylebook, also known by its full name the associated press stylebook and briefing on media law, is an english grammar style and usage guide created by american journalists working for or connected with the associated press to standardize mass communication. For composition titles such as books, video games, films, tv shows, works of art, speeches, etc. Do you know the big differences between ap, apa, chicago. Spiralbound book, updated each spring 2019 ap stylebook. To create an em dash on an apple computer, hold down the option and shift while striking the hyphen.
But mastering the 500page book, which is updated every year, can be. Use the following guidelines to produce clean copy, style errorfree writing with unnecessary mistakes. Associated press style is to use dashes, not bullets, for lists that follow a colon. Mar, 2015 the ap stylebook, the buzzfeed style guide, the economist style guide, and the chicago manual of style all recommend hyphenating ebook, as well as most other e words such as ereader and ecommerce. Mar 24, 2017 associated press issues new guidance on sex, gender. Ap is releasing the 2015 ap stylebook ebook with basic books, a division of the perseus books group, which also publishes the perfectbound print ap. Whether you want help learning ap style for the first time or you could use a refresher, let ap style quizzes act as your virtual tutor. Ap style state abbreviations for press release dateline follow these associated press guidelines for the u. States should also be abbreviated when used as part of a shortform political affiliation. The pr professionals ap style cheat sheet communique pr. Ap stylebook cannot be made available in any printed form to any other person, third party or affiliate, or used for cdrom publishing, fax on demand, audiotext, email, or any other electronic delivery service or forany other purpose than the posting of the ap stylebook on your internal computer system, without ap s prior written approval. Jun 19, 2017 consistency is essential to our profession and ap stylebook helps ensure uniformity throughout our worldwide distribution. The ap stylebook is a writing style guide used when writing for news media outlets.
Here are all the ap abbreviations and their usps counterparts. Ap style holds that a few universally recognized abbreviations are required in some instances and some other abbreviations are acceptable depending on the context, but in general, as a writer, you should avoid having your writing appear as if its alphabet soup. After each bullet, capitalize the first letter and use periods at the end of each item. Oct 30, 2015 remember back in college when you had to keep track of all the different ap rules for your student newspaper on top of the chicago manual of style for your academic classes. The change is being made to be consistent in our style for domestic and international. There is indeed a science and art behind writing a press release. Sep 19, 2012 professional journalists and business communicators in the united states commonly write in associated press ap style. Fully revised and updated, this new edition contains more than 3,000 a to z entries including more than 200 new ones detailing the ap s rules.
The storm began in indiana and moved west toward peoria, ill. The majority of journalists and public relations practitioners use ap style, based on the associated press stylebook. As ap has added entries over the years, the stylebook has grown more useful and comprehensive, but also more daunting. Use the following guidelines to produce clean copy, styleerrorfree writing with unnecessary mistakes.
While the associated press style guide gives guidance on how to cite sources used within articles, it does not indicate guidelines for using footnotes, since footnotes do not typically appear with newspaper and magazine articles. Remember back in college when you had to keep track of all the different ap rules for your student newspaper on top of the chicago manual of style for your academic classes. Street, avenue, and boulevard are only abbreviated when with numbered addresses. The ap stylebook, the buzzfeed style guide, the economist style guide, and the chicago manual of style all recommend hyphenating ebook, as well as most other e words such as ereader and ecommerce its conceivable that over time, ebook may lose its hyphen. As the ap style book writes, names not commonly before the public should not be reduced to acronyms solely to save a few words.
But before getting into that, lets get it out of the way first to note that if your usage of the country name is a noun, spell it out rather than abbreviating it. In addition to an enhanced home page that features style tips and stylebook events, the sites search functionality is greatly. Ap style state abbreviations differ from their corresponding us postal service abbreviations, are in parentheses. The ap stylebook is widely used as a writing and editing reference in newsrooms, classrooms and corporate offices worldwide. The american psychological association apa publication manual, which is used for writing academic papers, agrees about using the periods. Ap stylebook cannot be made available in any printed form to any other person, third party or affiliate, or used for cdrom publishing, fax on demand, audiotext, email, or any other electronic delivery service or forany other purpose than the posting of the ap stylebook on your internal computer system, without aps prior written approval. Associated press ap style is a specific form of writing that is used in magazines, newspapers, certain websites and other journalistic publications. If were speaking about regions of the state, should it be south louisiana, north. Ap style requires consistency in spelling, capitalization, punctuation and. The department prefers bullets, but punctuate them per ap style. Following is the breakdown between ap style and chicago style. In ap style writing, many different words are abbreviated in an effort to conserve space. Before we begin to enlist the abbreviations, it is mandatory for one to learn and garner information about what ap is, with. Ap style state abbreviations differ from their corresponding united states postal service abbreviations, provided in parentheses.
Using correct ap style for book, movie, and song titles. Spell out the names of the two states that are not part of the contiguous united states and of the continental states that are five letters or fewer. When abbreviating the state names, dont make the mistake of using the postal code abbreviations. It wouldnt be ap style without an exception or two. There are quite a few rules in the ap stylebook for state names and ap style state abbreviations. But do you know the big differences between these four popular writing styles. If a states name is standing alone or in conjunction with a city or town in your text, spell out the entire states name. Ap style isnt keen on using state abbreviations in titles, so spell them out.