STILL IN STYLE II
More info AP style
Mastering
small stuff
JUSTICE B. HILL
Style issues continue to a nightmare for young -- and
experienced -- journalists. The Associated Press Stylebook is
thick with information, and no one can know everything in the
text. Still, that’s not a reason to ignore the simple stuff. You do
so at your peril in the journalism trade.
Below are some additional AP style points that all journalists
must learn. Some of these appeared on an earlier version of
this handout, but some are new points: built around college
issues that you’ll face when writing for campus publications.
Take time to go over these material, because you will find it
useful to you:
academic departments
Capitalize only when using an official, complete department
name or when a proper noun or adjective is used. Prepositions
should be lowercase in all instances. For example: Jane Smith
is in the Department of English or The English department has
productive scholars.
capitalization
Avoid unnecessary capitalization. Capitalize proper nouns.
Common nouns such as“university” and “president” should be
capitalized only when used as part of a full name for a person,
place or thing:The Ohio University is a research institution. The
university is among the nation’s top research institutions.
President Rodney McDavis served as an administrator in
California before coming to Athens, Ohio. The president is a
native of Ohio and completed his bachelor’s degree here.
cellphone
Not cell phone. Similarly, smartphone.
dates and months
When a month is included as part of a specific date, use Jan.,
Feb., March, April, May, June, July, Aug., Sept., Oct., Nov., Dec.
For example: John Smith’s birthday is Sept. 12, 1985. Jane
Smith’s birthday is June 7, 1983. Do not abbreviate the names
of any months when only a month and year are given: The
research project began in January 2000 and ended in
November 2003.
email
As show above, do not hyphenate. A hyphen, however, should
be used with e-book, e-business and e-commerce.
fundraiser
Do not use a hyphen or split fundraiser into two words. Correct:
Fundraiser, fundraising.
Internet
Always capitalize: She surfed the Internet.
names
Use first and last name on first reference and last name only on
second reference. In cases where two people have the same
last name, use first and last names on second reference: J.
Frazier Smith is a prolific researcher. Smith has been at UB
since 1984. His son, Lincoln Smith, joined Ohio one year ago.
Lincoln Smith is a great researcher, though he has less
experience than J. Frazier Smith. In general, do not use
THE NUTS AND BOLTS
WRITING PHILOSOPHY
‘There’s a story in every man.
The challenge is to find it.
Then the problem is to tell it
without putting the customers
to sleep.’
– Jim Murray
Hall of Fame sportswriter
courtesy titles. Use middle initials according to a person’s preference and when the initials
help identify a specific individual.
numbers
When referring to common objects, spell out one through nine and use figures for 10 and
above: Jane Smith has two computers, three pieces of paper, 10 pencils and 11 pens on
her desk. See entries in the Associated Press Stylebook for information on using numbers
in circumstances not outlined here. Except when denoting a year, numbers at the start of a
sentence should always be spelled out: 2009 has been a great year for Jane Smith. Sixtysix students signed up for a class she created.
1
age – Use figures when referring to age: Jane Smith, 35, has a 1-year-old daughter.
She also has a boy who is 10 years old.
2
billion and million - Use figures with million or billion: A $1.5 million grant or 1 billion
people.
3
dimensions and weights – Use figures with dimensions and weights: A 4-foot-long
fence or a rock that weighs 3 ounces.
4
percentages – Use figures with percentages: 1 percent or 99 percent. Use figures
when referring to ratios: 2-to-1.
5
street addresses – See entry for street addresses in this style guide.
6
telephone numbers – See entry for telephone numbers in this style guide.
7
times – See entry for times in this style guide for information on using numbers to
refer to times.
serial commas
Do not put a comma before the conjunction in a simple series: OU’s researchers are
hardworking, innovative and creative. Use a comma before the conjunction in a complex
series: In considering Janice Smith for the job of research assistant, the faculty member
considered whether Smith had enough research experience to complete required duties,
whether Smith would be able to continue working for more than one semester, and whether
Smith was enthusiastic about the project at hand.
street addresses
When giving a numbered address, use the abbreviations Ave., Blvd., and St. and spell out
all other similar words such as Drive and Circle. When only a street name is given, spell out
all words: The Holzer Family Medicine Center is at 1315 State Ave., at the corner of
Jefferson Avenue and East Utica Street. North, East, South and West should abbreviated
as N., E., S. and W. only when a numbered address is given: OU’s family medicine
department has offices at 132 W. Main St. in Cuba, N.Y. or OU’s family medicine
department has offices on Main Street in Cuba, N.Y. For address numbers, use figures:
The OU Anderson Gallery is at 1 Martha Jackson Place. Spell out First through Ninth when
used as street names, but use figures for 10th Street, 11th Street and above.
telephone numbers
Use figures with hyphens, without parentheses: 716-645-2000
times
With the exception of noon and midnight, use figures and lowercase letters. Always use the
word “to” to separate times that denote the beginning and end of an event: The class began
at noon and ended at 1 p.m. John Smith skipped the class because he worked from 11
a.m. to 5 p.m. He went to bed at midnight.
titles
In general, for academic titles, capitalize only formal titles that precede a name.
Prepositions should be lowercase in all instances: Vice President of Student Affairs J.
Frazier Smith wears glasses or J. Frazier Smith, vice president of student affairs, wears
glasses. “Professor” is always capitalized when a faculty member is a UB Distinguished
Professor and/or OU Distinguished Professor, OU Distinguished Teaching Professor or
OUDistinguished Service Professor. It also is capitalized when it used in the name of an
endowed professorship, such as the Albert and Elizabeth Rekate Professor of Medicine.
For information on non-academic titles, see the Associated Press Stylebook entry on titles.
Commonly used titles that are abbreviated include Rev., Gov., Lt. Gov., Rep. and Sen.
when they precede a name: Gov. John Kasich.
website
One word, not capitalized.