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Associated Press Style Cheat Sheet, Cheat Sheet of Journalism

Associated Press Style Cheat Sheet: Abbreviations and Acronyms, Capitalization, Numbers, Punctuation and Miscellaneous, Other Common Style Rules and Technological Terms

Typology: Cheat Sheet

2019/2020

Uploaded on 10/09/2020

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ASSOCIATED PRESS STYLE CHEAT SHEET
(Compiled with assistance from online resources, including Scribd, Purdue
University and Towson University)
Abbreviations and Acronyms
As a general rule, use only commonly recognized abbreviations. The most
common, such as NASA, FBI and CIA, can be used on all references. Less
well-known but still common ones such as OSHA and NATO can be used after
you spell out the full name on first mention. In most cases, however, the
stylebook suggests using a generic reference such as the agency or the
alliance for all references after the first.
Don’t put unfamiliar abbreviations in parentheses after the first reference (for
example, “The American Copy Editors Society (ACES) …”) Instead either
repeat the full name on subsequent references or use a generic reference,
such as the society.
Academic degrees: Andrews University uses the style of no punctuation in
academic degree abbreviations. This is an exception to AP style. Examples:
BA, BS, Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science
MA, MS, Master of Arts, Master of Science
EdD, PhD, Doctor of Education, Doctor of Philosophy
MBA, Master of Business Administration
Do not add the word "degree" after an abbreviation of the degree or
after the full name of the degree
Wrong: She'll receive her PhD degree this fall
Right: She'll receive her PhD this fall
Wrong: She has a BS degree in chemistry
Right: She has a bachelor's degree in chemistry
Right: She has a Bachelor of Science in chemical engineering
Abbreviate junior or senior directly after a name, with no comma to set it off:
Justin Wilson Jr.
Spell out the names of all states when used alone and in body text. This is a
recent change to AP Style.
Be sure not to use the U.S. Postal Service abbreviations for states unless you
are providing a full address including ZIP code: “Send contributions to Relief
Fund, Box 185, Pasadena, CA 91030.”
Spell out the name of a month when it is used without a specific date:
“August is too hot for a visit to Florida.” Abbreviate months with six or more
letters if they are used with a specific date: Sept. 28. Always spell out those
with five or fewer letters: May 15.
Spell out titles used alone: “She was the first female senator from her state.”
Abbreviate and capitalize most titles when they are used directly before a
name: “Sen. Boxer posed hard questions for Rice.
Spell out all generic parts of street names (avenue, north, road) when no
specific address is given: “The festival will be held on South Charles Street.”
When a number is used, abbreviate avenue (Ave.), boulevard (Blvd.), street
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ASSOCIATED PRESS STYLE CHEAT SHEET

(Compiled with assistance from online resources, including Scribd, Purdue University and Towson University) Abbreviations and Acronyms

  • As a general rule, use only commonly recognized abbreviations. The most common, such as NASA, FBI and CIA, can be used on all references. Less well-known but still common ones such as OSHA and NATO can be used after you spell out the full name on first mention. In most cases, however, the stylebook suggests using a generic reference such as the agency or the alliance for all references after the first.
  • Don’t put unfamiliar abbreviations in parentheses after the first reference (for example, “The American Copy Editors Society (ACES) …”) Instead either repeat the full name on subsequent references or use a generic reference, such as the society.
  • Academic degrees: Andrews University uses the style of no punctuation in academic degree abbreviations. This is an exception to AP style. Examples: BA, BS, Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science MA, MS, Master of Arts, Master of Science EdD, PhD, Doctor of Education, Doctor of Philosophy MBA, Master of Business Administration Do not add the word "degree" after an abbreviation of the degree or after the full name of the degree Wrong: She'll receive her PhD degree this fall Right: She'll receive her PhD this fall Wrong: She has a BS degree in chemistry Right: She has a bachelor's degree in chemistry Right: She has a Bachelor of Science in chemical engineering
  • Abbreviate junior or senior directly after a name, with no comma to set it off: Justin Wilson Jr.
  • Spell out the names of all states when used alone and in body text. This is a recent change to AP Style.
  • Be sure not to use the U.S. Postal Service abbreviations for states unless you are providing a full address including ZIP code: “Send contributions to Relief Fund, Box 185, Pasadena, CA 91030.”
  • Spell out the name of a month when it is used without a specific date: “August is too hot for a visit to Florida.” Abbreviate months with six or more letters if they are used with a specific date: Sept. 28. Always spell out those with five or fewer letters: May 15.
  • Spell out titles used alone: “She was the first female senator from her state.” Abbreviate and capitalize most titles when they are used directly before a name: “Sen. Boxer posed hard questions for Rice.”
  • Spell out all generic parts of street names (avenue, north, road) when no specific address is given: “The festival will be held on South Charles Street.” When a number is used, abbreviate avenue (Ave.), boulevard (Blvd.), street

(St.) and directional parts of street names: “The suspect was identified as Michael Shawn of 1512 N. Mission St.”

  • In writing news stories, never abbreviate:
    • The days of the week
    • Percent as %
    • Cents as ¢
    • And as & unless it is an official part of a name
    • Christmas as Xmas Capitalization The AP Stylebook uses what’s known as downstyle; that is, words are lowercased unless a rule says to capitalize them.
  • Capitalize common nouns such as party, river and street when they are part of a proper name for place, person or thing: the Libertarian Party, the Ohio River. But lowercase these common nouns when they stand alone or in subsequent references: “The party did not have a candidate for president,” “She nearly drowned in the river.” Lowercase all plural uses of common nouns: the Libertarian and Green parties, the Monongahela and Ohio rivers.
  • Capitalize Bible, without quotation marks, when referring to the Scriptures in the Old Testament or the New Testament. Capitalize also related terms such as the Gospels (referring to the first four books of the New Testament), Gospel of St. Mark, the Scriptures, the Holy Scriptures. Lowercase biblical in all uses. Lowercase bible as a nonreligious term: My dictionary is my bible. Do not abbreviate individual books of the Bible.
  • Lowercase the names of the seasons unless they are used in a proper name: the Summer Olympics.
  • Lowercase the word room except when used with the number of the room or when part of the name of a specially designated room: Room 315, the Lincoln Room.
  • Lowercase directional indicators except when they refer to specific geographic regions or popularized names for those regions: the Northeast; the Midwest.
  • Academic titles preceding a personal name are uppercased. The title is lowercased when it stands alone or follows a personal name. This includes professor, assistant professor, and associate professor. Examples: Right: President Niels-Erik Andreasen; Niels-Erik Andreasen, president of Andrews University; the president Right: Meredith Jones Gray, chair of the Department of English
  • Uppercase "University" when referring to Andrews University in the text. Numbers The AP Stylebook entry for numerals is deceptively short. A close look reveals that there are plenty of rules hiding among the many cross-references. The most common are:
  • In general, spell out numbers one through nine and use figures for numbers 10 on up. There are many exceptions that always take figures, however. Most, but not all, involve units of measurement. Common exceptions include:
  • To form a plural of a single letter, use s and an apostrophe: “All the B’s lined up to the right.” To form a plural of multiple letters, add s with no apostrophe: “She mastered her ABCs in little time.”
  • To form the plural of words made out of a group of letters, add the letter s : CDs, ABCs, TVs.
  • Titles of books, movies, recordings, television shows and similar works are set off in quotation marks, with all principal words capitalized: “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,” “Letters from Iwo Jima,” “Memory Almost Full,” “Grey’s Anatomy.” Titles of magazines, newspapers and reference works get no special treatment: Newsweek, The Boston Globe, The Associated Press Stylebook. Do not italicize or underline. Technological Terms Here are the correct spelling and capitalization rules for some common technological terms:
  • BlackBerry, BlackBerrys
  • download
  • eBay Inc (use EBay Inc. when the word begins a sentence)
  • e-book
  • e-book reader
  • e-reader
  • email
  • cellphone
  • Facebook
  • Google, Googling, Googled
  • hashtag
  • IM ( IMed, IMing ; for first reference, use instant messenger )
  • Internet (after first reference, the Net )
  • iPad, iPhone, iPod (use IPad, IPhone, or IPod when the word begins a sentence)
  • LinkedIn
  • social media
  • smartphone
  • the Net
  • Twitter, tweet, tweeted, retweet
  • World Wide Web, website, Web page
  • webmaster
  • YouTube