04/13/2005

2005 Edition of AP Stylebook now available

NEW YORK -- The phrase "Sept. 11" has officially joined the stylebook lexicon of The Associated Press. It's one of two dozen new entries in the 2005 edition of the AP Stylebook.

The entry reads: Sept. 11 The preferred term for describing the terrorist attacks in the United States Sept. 11, 2001. Use 2001 if needed for clarity. See 9/11 entry.

The updated Stylebook is now available, in both print and electronic forms. In addition, the AP offers subscription-based online access to the Stylebook.

The downloadable PDF or HTML versions are available for a one-time site license fee. Requests for these electronic versions can be made through www.apbookstore.com or www.apstylebook.com or by e-mail to apstylebook(at)ap.org.

Cost of the spiral-bound book remains $7.75 a copy for AP members, $10.75 to college bookstores, and $13.75 for others. Shipping charges depend on dollar value of the order, varying from $5.95 for orders up to $25, to $19.95 for orders of more than $300.

Members can be directly assessed, with authorization; prepayments from others should be sent to The Associated Press, 450 West 33rd St., New York, NY 10001 (attn: Stylebook). The book can also be ordered online by credit card at www.apbookstore.com or www.apstylebook.com.

The Web-based AP Stylebook is aimed at writers and editors who do not have access through member newspaper or corporate intranet systems and prefer the Web to the spiral-bound book. It can be ordered by credit card on a secure site at www.apbookstore.com or www.apstylebook.com for an annual fee ($20 for individuals; site license subscriptions vary according to the number of users).

The online Stylebook provides searchable, instant access, with updates, and allows the addition of a user's own entries to create a private stylebook.

Changes in the 2005 edition include:

New entries: Sept. 11, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; child care; Customs; Doctors Without Borders; e.g.; FedEx; G-8; Game Boy; i.e.; JetBlue Airways; Lycra; Midwest region; physician assistant; Southwest Airlines; sync; taps; tilde; touch-screen; underscore; video game; voice mail.

Changes and updates: AIDS; backyard; best-seller; call letters; citizens band; the Commonwealth; Congo; earthquakes; European Union; fundraising; Hodgkins disease; Kmart; metric system; Middle East; National Guard; PepsiCo; policymaker; Sears; sewage; union names; United Nations; U.S.

The changes are effective April 15.

The Stylebook was first produced in 1953. It was called a Style Book and there were 62 pages.

As AP writer Scott Charton noted in his 50th anniversary article on the Stylebook in 2003, its creation was prompted in part by a technical change in the way the AP transmitted news -- shifting from all capital letters to uppercase and lowercase -- as well as a need for consistency among a worldwide editorial staff that churned out stories for newspapers with a variety of style preferences.

Stylebook Editor Norm Goldstein says new entries and revisions in the Stylebook reflect changes in usage for words, grammar and punctuation, as well as changes in society when it comes to taste and touchy subjects.

Goldstein's office at AP's new headquarters on the west side of Manhattan is replete with suggested additions, deletions and changes. Every day he receives e-mails from writers, editors and, increasingly, the public. Inquiries, compliments and complaints come from around the world.

"It's a challenge. We look at every suggestion," says Goldstein.

Because of its longevity and AP's broad reach -- nearly 2 million copies have been distributed since 1977, including a retail edition -- the Stylebook is regarded by many editors to be the last word before publication and the first reference to which novice and experienced writers turn.

"The need for consistent writing in a changing culture is constant," says Goldstein, "and the Stylebook provides a framework for news professionals and others involved in editing and writing at all levels."

Contact: Jack Stokes, AP Corporate Communications, 212.621-1720