writing

While the media run rampant with flimsy leads and stories based solely on hearsay, it's good to know that at least their grammar stays in check, thanks to the hard and fast rules set forth in the Associated Press Stylebook and Libel Manual.

Providing direct distinctions between similar words, the correct spelling of commonly-misspelled words, and the politically-correct use of dangerous words, the AP stylebook delineates specific style rules for virtually every journalistic possibility. Set up in a dictionary-style format, the manual's general stylebook lists everything from the perils of "a" versus "an" to the preferred usage of ZIP codes.

Following the stylebook are the more specific sections dealing with sports and business style, both also set up with A to Z listings, including usage and spelling. Although sports writing info may be confined to the needs of the sportswriter, the business section is helpful for those who take interest in corporate designations and definitions of stock market terms.

Finally, just before the manual switches from the absoluteness of style to the murky legal waters of the libel section, comes, in my opinion, the pièce de résistance-A Guide To Punctuation-music to the ears of syntax-psychos and grammar-Nazis, alike.

Starting with words of wisdom from what the AP refers to as "a bible of writers," "The Elements of Style," this portion is eleven pages of invaluable knowledge for any writer, regardless of profession, and is arranged so succintly that even children can access its information for their own use.

Although I have thus far had little use for the information about libel in this book, it is primarily what its introduction claims-not a libel text, but merely a useful guide which "explains the fundamental principles in libel for working writers and editors." It also contains some key parts of the Freedom of Information Act which should be read by everyone to fully know our rights regarding the access to federal information, during what has now become the Age of the X-file.

All-in-all, the AP Stylebook and Libel Manual should be a welcome edition to any writer's reference library.

In addition to common style questions like the ones above, the stylebook contains a wealth of common information. What is a mach number? How does one calculate heat indexes and wind chill factors? And other pieces of commonly needed information are interspersed throughout the text.

This edition also includes specific guides for business and sports terminology, as well as an Internet guide.

While less useful to those not members of the media, this text also includes a briefing on media law. Some sections, such as the right to individual privacy, might appeal to the general public.

The AP Stylebook and Briefing on Media Law is an essential addition to any reference collection.

By nature, this book is essential. It fills a very real need. It supplies an essential and uniform standard for the composition of news writting. For this function, the book deserves five stars, however because this function is so essential, it requiers an up to date standard, and untill this book comes up to pace with the modern times, I will withold three of those stars.

When I say it is not up to date, a great example of what I mean comes with the current frequency of the need to use Arabic names. The book provides no clear standard for this. The Arabic name Al Queda, for instance, has become quite common place, but news organizations have struggled with how exactly to quote this name. Most of the trouble centers around the singular nomonative case article ('al') which of course translates as 'the.' Thus, Al Queda has also been cited as The Queda, or even just Queda. If the whole invaluable point of the book is standardize the language used in reporting, then it needs to address the newest issues in the news and the vocabulary that has rocketed into our headlines from out of nowhere in the last few years.

Also, as bad as what is left out may be, it is not nearly as bad as what is left in. For instance, the book suggest that the proper way to refer to Mainland China is "Red China." Even worse, the book explains that the uncapitalized term 'god' is used to refer to *false* gods, whereas the capitalized term 'God' is used to refer to the *one true god.* For me this is particularly offensive, and on the whole, these are just a couple of the examples of the sort of antiquated and obnoxious McCarthy-era media manipulations that for some reason still haunt us through the AP Style Manual.

In the end, these problems are all easy to fix, and this book comes out in new editions all the time. I believe it performs an essential function, of standardizing the terms used by the media, which should reduce biased manipulation of language (as opposed to encouraging them, as in the examples I have given). I worked journalism in College, and I even won a few awards. I credit much of this to the ideas and applications behind the AP Style manual. Not only does it do a great service to journalism and reporting, but also, it teaches an elegant and simple way of writting, succinctly and to the point without sacraficing depth and sophistication.

I was once told by a gifted Classicist, after reading both Herodotus and Thucidides, that although it would be easy to lapse into writting like Herodotus, one really should strive to write like Thucidides. The best way I can explain Thucidides' style in modern terms is to equate that aspiration with reading and observing the concepts in the Associate Press Stylebook.