Five New Updates to the 2016 Associated Press Stylebook

The 2016 AP Stylebook is out and, with this newest edition, comes an array of essential updates. A must-have resource for writers, marketers and journalists, the AP Stylebook is packed with fundamental guidelines for everything from spelling and punctuation to language and journalistic style. After its initial publication in 1953, it has grown to about 600 pages filled with juicy writing tips and tricks. Continuing our annual AP Stylebook blog post tradition, here are five important updates in this year’s edition:   

1. The biggie: Lowercase “internet” and “web” in all instances. Enough said.

2. Along the same lines: Now use “internet of things” (all lowercase).

3. Social media updates: When referring to Twitter posts use “tweet,” when referring to posts on Snapchat use “snap” and use "post" when referring to Facebook or Instagram posts.

4. For food lovers: New entries in the food section include “medjool dates,” “kombucha,” “shawarma,” “mescal,” “microgreens” and “horchata.” And for the bean enthusiasts out there - AP now prefers “chickpea” to “Garbanzo bean.” 

5. Natural disasters: Do not use a hyphen when referring to the strength of earthquakes. For example, one would say “a 3.0 magnitude earthquake.”

This just skims the top of the nearly 250 new or revised entries. Make sure to check out the 2016 AP Stylebook yourself and follow @APStylebook for live updates and answers to grammar and style questions.