An Introduction to Journalistic Writing AP Style Writing An Introduction to Journalistic Writing

Table of Contents What is AP Style? Why use AP Style? The Basics of AP Style Common AP Style Mistakes

What is AP Style? AP style is a form of writing that most United States journalists and public relations professionals use All of the guidelines are published in the Associated Press Stylebook, which is updated regularly

Why use AP Style? A working knowledge of writing in AP Style is usually a requirement for working in print journalism. Following AP Style provides consistency throughout news media It is considered the golden standard for news writing

The Basics of AP Style An alphabetical listing of AP Style writing standards for student journalists

Ages Always use numerals when writing ages If the age is used as an adjective or in the place of a noun, it is hyphenated Examples: An 18-year-old student The student is 18 years old The teacher is in his 40s

Composition Titles Do not italicize magazine or newspaper titles –just capitalize them Use quotation marks for the titles of books, video games, movies, TV shows, works of art, speeches, and song titles. Examples: My favorite book is “Fahrenheit 451.” Before going to work, his father always reads The New York Times. “Friends” was a very popular show in the 1990s.

Dates Dates are written as numerals. “th” is not used Some months are abbreviated Months without dates are not abbreviated. Jan. Feb. March April May June July Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec.

Dates Continued Examples: The board meeting took place on Nov. 14. It is usually cold in January. Her birthday is April 16.

Days of the Week Capitalize, but do not abbreviate, days of the week Examples: The concert is on Friday, Nov. 18 Students can sign-up for the ACT on Tuesday

Monetary Units Greater than $1 Always written as numerals with the “$” sign used beforehand. Examples: $3 $30 $300 $300,000 $3 million $3 billion

Monetary Units Less than $1 Spell out the word “cents” in all lowercase letters Example: She has 14 cents.

Names When mentioning a person for the first time, use their first and last name Use the person’s last name for all subsequent references Do not use courtesy titles (Mr., Mrs., etc.) UNLESS if it is part of a quote or the title is needed to differentiate between two or more people mentioned in the story with the same last name.

Numbers Numbers one through nine and spelled out Numbers 10 and above are written as numerals Example: The three girls applied at 12 stores.

Numbers Continued Never start a sentence with a numeral EXCEPT if the sentence starts with a year Examples: Three baseball players were drafted Four hundred incoming freshmen enrolled this year Ordinal numbers are okay when describing the order in time or location. Spell out first through ninth, and write 10th and higher as a numeral. She came in second place They sat in the 12th row

Percentages Always written as numerals with the word “percent” written afterward. Example: Enrollment at West Coast High School increased 3 percent.

Punctuation Commas and periods go inside quotation marks Example: The witness said, “I saw the accident.” Example: “I saw the accident,” the witness said. In a simple series, do not use a comma before a conjunction Example: She likes sushi, pizza and tamales. Use a single space after a period

States If you are writing about a state and not mentioning a city, it should be spelled out When you include the city name and state together, the state needs to be abbreviated. Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Ohio, Texas, and Utah are not abbreviated.

State Abbreviations Ala. Ariz. Ark. Calif. Colo. Conn. Del. Fla. Ga. Ill. Ind. Kan. Ky. La. Md. Mass. Mich. Minn. Miss. Mo. Mont. Neb. Nev. N.H. N.J. N.M. N.Y. N.C. N.D. Okla. Ore. Pa. R.I. S.C. S.D. Tenn. Vt. Va. Wash. W. Va. Wis. Wyo. Example: She came from Anaheim, Calif. The treaty was signed in Honolulu, Hawaii. The earthquake was in California.

Time When adding the time of day is critical for your story (for example, the time of an upcoming performance), write the time as a number. Use a colon to distinguish the hour from the minutes. Do not use :00 Spell out noon and midnight Examples: 3 p.m. 1:35 a.m.

Common AP Style Mistakes Double check your writing for these commonly made mistakes

Common AP Style Mistakes There is no S in toward (and the same applies to upward, downward, forward, backward) Avoid the use of the word “here.” Instead, provide detailed location information When referring to numbers, use “more than” instead of “over”

Test your AP Style Knowledge Check to see if you can find the AP style errors in the following sentences

Classroom Practice On Sat., May 14th, the team celebrated its 2nd place win in the tournament. .

Classroom Practice On Sat., May 14th, the team celebrated its 2nd place win in the tournament. .

Answer On Saturday, May 14, the team celebrated its second place win in the tournament.

Classroom Practice The plane will arrive at the Albany, New York airport at 3:00 pm.

Classroom Practice The plane will arrive at the Albany, New York airport at 3:00 pm.

Answer The plane will arrive at the Albany, N.Y. airport at 3 p.m.

Classroom Practice The theater department will perform Pride and Prejudice at two thirty in the afternoon on Friday, October 21st. Tickets are five dollars at the door.

Classroom Practice The theater department will perform Pride and Prejudice at two thirty in the afternoon on Friday, October 21st. Tickets are five dollars at the door.

Answer The theater department will perform “Pride and Prejudice” at 2:30 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 21. Tickets are $5 at the door.

Classroom Practice He is thirty-one years old. The 17 year old girl won 1st place in the event. Only three % of students like beets. In the 1980’s, big hair was in.

Classroom Practice He is thirty-one years old. The 17 year old girl won 1st place in the event. Only three % of students like beets. In the 1980’s, big hair was in.

Answer He is 31 years old. The 17-year-old girl won first place in the event. Only 3 percent of students like beets. In the 1980s, big hair was in.

Classroom Practice The football coach said, “the team gave it their all”. Practice for the debate team is held on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays.

Classroom Practice The football coach said, “the team gave it their all”. Practice for the debate team is held on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays.

Answer The football coach said, “the team gave it their all.” Practice for the debate team is held on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays.