1. Welcome to SportsJournalists.com, a friendly forum for discussing all things sports and journalism.

    Your voice is missing! You will need to register for a free account to get access to the following site features:
    • Reply to discussions and create your own threads.
    • Access to private conversations with other members.
    • Fewer ads.

    We hope to see you as a part of our community soon!

AP styleguide: Bible?

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by CCaple, May 21, 2009.

  1. SF_Express

    SF_Express Active Member

    There's nobody's who's more "as long as your paper's consistent; that's what style is all about" than me -- not to mention "if your boss makes the call, end of story" -- but your bosses are being really, really stupid on this one. I'd fight them at every turn (OK, that might be a bit extreme).

    And Frank, you're right, in the grand scheme of life, it's really minor, but it's still bad writing in a profession where we care about such things.

    Once you've gotten away from the mom and it's obvious that all subsequent references are about the kid, it's simply common sense, which your editor-in-chief and copy chief are lacking in this case.
     
  2. awriter

    awriter Active Member

    That applies to the AP stylebook as well. It's a guide, not a Bible. Common sense needs to prevail, and if I'm CCaple, I'm putting up a strong fight against the EIC and copy chief. And, really, against bad writing.
     
  3. RickStain

    RickStain Well-Known Member

    Stylebook worship is a form of laziness. It's saying "Hooray, there's a standardized set of rules I can mindlessly follow and not have to actually think about writing or editing."
     
  4. I've found "AP style" to differ from bureau to bureau and even from writer to writer, especially for stuff filed on deadline. Treat it as a guide, not as a mandate.

    But what gripes me is newspapers that go away from AP style and force you to re-edit wire stories to fit an arbitrary (and in many cases outmoded) style. That's a real waste of time in today's leaner newsrooms.
     
  5. SF_Express

    SF_Express Active Member

    I generally agree, and have yielded on a number of things in this newsroom, but there are some things I just can't leave, like their routine botching of foot/feet (well, it's simple botching, they always say "foot" even when it's wrong) and things like that.
     
Draft saved Draft deleted

Share This Page