Today’s writer, more than ever, needs to know about so many things. Of course they need to be knowledgeable of the subject matter they write on, but they also need to know about styles of journalism, entertainment law, core things about government, finance, and culture, editing, and all things Internet. How does one keep up and know how things are supposed to be stated properly?
One
of the best resources for a writer is The Associated Press Stylebook. Millions of copies have been sold of the
industry’s best-selling reference book.
It’s essential for authors, bloggers, journalists, editors, and anyone
who has to communicate with the public.
Even
seasoned writers and veteran journalists would benefit from a refresher. The 2019 edition is out. Its 639 pages can be
helpful for those seeking guidelines on:
·
How
to refer to certain groups or organizations or classes of people.
·
How
to evaluate reliable sources.
·
What
to look for in poll data.
·
How
to cover issues in science, health, and businesses.
·
Reporting
about social media.
·
What
you need to know about religion, sports and fashion.
The
two more important sections revolve around media law and standards of
journalism. Since so many of us step
into a public realm to pen our words and share them via social media, we are
all becoming a part of the media. We may
not be CNN or The Washington Post, but we do impact others and
influence public debate. We must be
responsible.
In
the section on media law, we learn about things like use of confidential
sources, defamation, privacy copyright infringement, the First Amendment, and
the legal principles of news gathering. This is useful to today’s author, blogger,
and writer because the laws have evolved over the years and new technologies
have come into play. But the thing for
the modern writer to be aware of is that he or she plays a role in today’s
gathering and sharing of information.
There are responsibilities, ethics, and legal constraints that go along
with the power of writing.
Lastly,
I liked the section about AP’s statement of news values and principles. It discussed so many issues that confront the
media – clearly identifying advertising, plagiarism, anonymous sources, paid
news sources, conflicts of interest, political activities of the staff, data
representations, propaganda, obscenities, privacy, and on and on. There are so many ethical dilemmas when it
comes to how news is gathered and disseminated.
It’s nice to know that the AP, with over 170 years of experience, has
some standards worth following.
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