Introduction to AP Style

AP Style is… A standardized way of referencing people, places, dates and things. All news organizations recognize AP style. Bring your AP Stylebooks to class, from now on.

The Most Important AP Style References

Referencing people On first reference, list the person’s full name. On second reference, just list their last name. Do not include Mr., Ms. or titles, like Dr. For instance: Jane Kim said she enjoys skating…Kim also stated that skating could be dangerous.

Referencing people Always put the person’s name before the word “said.” It is more important to identify the person’s name first. Only put “said” first if the person’s job title is long. For instance: “This place is incredible,” said John Jackson, president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

Referencing times Strike this from your vocabulary: “at about.” Something either happened specifically at some time or about some time. No: “At about 5 a.m., the 7-11 was robbed.” Yes: “At 5 a.m., the 7-11 was robbed.”

Referencing times Always make sure the time is listed with a single number, followed by a.m. or p.m. No: At 9:00 a.m., the store will open. Yes: At 9 a.m. the store will open.

Referencing dates Abbreviate the following months in dates: Jan. Feb. Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec.

For example… No: “A burglar robbed the store on September 11, 2008.” Yes: “A burglar robbed the store on Sept. 11, 2008.”

When not part of a date… Use the whole month name when it is not part of a date: “In January 2008, we celebrated New Years’ Day.”

Other notes: No first person in a hard news story! No editorializing. Use inverted pyramid structure.

Addresses If you have a full, numbered address to print, then abbreviate the street. i.e. He robbed the house at 314 E. 22nd St. If you only have the street name though, spell out the street. i.e. The robbery was at East 33rd Street and Greenmount Avenue.

Titles are always abbreviated In the first reference, and onward, you may abbreviate titles. Gov. (Governor) Lt. Gov. (Lieutenant Governor) Rep. (Representative) The Rev. (Reverend) Sen. (The Senator)

You also need to note political affiliations If you are writing about a Senator or a member of the House of Representatives, note their political affiliation. You can note it using party and state abbreviations. Or you can note it within the sentence. i.e. Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., said she hates Republican Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska.

Numbers Spell out all numbers less than ten. Use Arabic numerals for values greater than 10. i.e. Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) has two daughters, but he was not prepared for the mob of nearly 200 screaming 14-year-olds.