Dates are expressed as numerals. The AP style (as it's known in the trade) is quite different from The New York Times style or Chicago Manual of Style. March through July are never abbreviated. Do not use quote marks with reference books or the names of newspapers or magazines. Don't use courtesy titles, or use the first name again unless you are writing about more than one person with that last name; both John and Jane Doe, for example, or Joe and Jack Brown. By using ThoughtCo, you accept ourThese Are Frequently Used Journalism Terms You Need to Know10 Important Steps for Producing a Quality News Story But the AP Stylebook is designed to be used by reporters and The AP Stylebook is also an excellent reference work. AP has a list of 30 cities considered so well known that they can be referred to without an identifying state; check if you're not sure.The Associated Press isn't just concerned with where to put your commas and what to capitalize. Use the buttons below to explore the format. Follow story style in spelling, but use numerals for all numbers and single quotes for quotation marks. Punctuation ending a quote goes inside the quotation marks. Don't capitalize a.m. and p.m., and use periods.Spell out a number that begins a sentence and numbers smaller than 10, and use numerals for the rest. In AP Style, only the first word and proper nouns are capitalized in headlines. She frequently writes tourism and lifestyle articles for chamber of commerce publications and is a respected book reviewer. The organization abides by a set of values that cover a wide range of the situations journalists face on a regular basis. The months August through February are abbreviated when used with numbered dates. Generally, these are capitalized and placed in quotation marks. Abbreviate all other states as they are listed on our AP Style State Abbreviations page. For example, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. AP Style for Proper Nouns. For example, ANN ARBOR, Mich. SACRAMENTO, Calif. You should always spell out Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Ohio, Texas, and Utah. The first reason is for titles such as President, Prime Minister, Secretary or Ambassador. For instance, what’s the difference between a burglary and a robbery? Exception, US, UK, and UN (no periods) in all headlines. Don't use a serial comma before "and" when you're listing several items unless the last item has its own conjunction: "The mayor's office, the highway department and the parks department" is correct, as is "the mayor's office, the highway department, and the department of parks and recreation. For times, use numerals unless you are referring to noon or midnight. The Associated Press style doesn’t use the Oxford comma, so take care not to add it to your press release. Tony Rogers has an M.S. On the other hand, don’t get cocky and toss out your AP Stylebook once you’ve memorized the basics. Use numerals for the date (May 3, not May 3rd) and a comma between the day and year. One of the first things a student in a beginning journalism course learns about is Associated Press style or AP style for short. The Oxford, or serial, comma is used before the word “and” to separate items or phrases in a list. Whether to use anonymous sources, how to incorporate graphics and photos and what are considered conflicts of interest are just a few questions covered; many media outlets besides the AP consider these rules the generally accepted standard.Anne Pyburn Craig has written for a range of regional and local publications ranging from in-depth local investigative journalism to parenting, business, real estate and green building publications.
But remember, these represent only a tiny fraction of what’s in the AP Stylebook, so don’t use this page as a substitute for getting your own stylebook. Use numerals when the number is someone or something's age; if the age is written as a noun, use hyphens (9-year-old.) If a time is on the hour, don't use :00, just say 11 a.m.; if the time you're writing is 11:25, use a colon between hours and minutes. Capitalize brand names and names of corporations. There are some 5,000 rules in all, and they are frequently updated. However, we only use these capitals when the title comes before the name. Spell out the names of states. In AP style, there are other reasons why we use a capital letter. How to cite a journal article in APA Style. As such, it can be intimidating to the first-time user. So before you write that the mugger burgled the little old lady’s purse, check your stylebook.