In a Friday email to subscribers listing updated entries for its style manual, the Associated Press is urging journalists to avoid making references in news stories that suggest there are only two sexes in the human race.
“Not all people fall under one of two categories for sex or gender, according to leading medical organizations, so avoid references to both, either or opposite sexes or genders as a way to encompass all people” the AP Stylebook says. “When needed for clarity or in certain stories about scientific studies, alternatives include men and women, boys and girls, males and females.”
The Stylebook issued further guidance for use of pronouns under an entry named “they, them, their.” Those third-person plural pronouns are preferred by some transgender or gender fluid individuals who say they are not comfortable with traditional male or female personal pronouns.
For its part, the AP advises writers that while “[i]n most cases, a plural pronoun should agree in number with the antecedent …. when alternative wording is overly awkward and clumsy” it may be permissible to use they, them, or their to refer to an individual. “However, rewording usually is possible and always is preferable” because “[c]larity is a top priority” in news reporting and “gender-neutral use of a singular they is unfamiliar to many readers.”
The news wire then added there is a linguistic line it’s drawn with personal pronouns. “We do not use other gender-neutral pronouns such as xe or ze.”
Full story at The Washington Times.
to smooth things over, ALL reference to individuals must transcend gender .when the name of a subject is used, gender can often be detected from historical patterns ( joseph, male, susanna, female). anonymization will help lessen the terrible pain that some suffer when gender is referred to, especially if they are gender fluid. reporting language sample: ‘someone robbed a bank in pasadena. they held a gun in the air and demanded quiet. some people were frightened, but someone got away. some police officials’ description was ‘someone in a grey car…etc. no police sketch will be made available because visual representation of gender may…
prove quite distressing to ‘unique gender- gifted ones’. arrest rates will. of course , fall, but that is the price of maintaining gender identity- security in a multi-cultural setting. i saw somewhere that retailers are trying to get away from ‘women’s , men’s signs for clothing ,etc to lessen offense
If true, that is insane.
Some stores now have boys and girls sections without signs. If enough people complain, this madness will stop.
Look carefully at the books you buy. I bought a children’s holiday book at a drug store which had every major Christian holiday, including Mother’s Day, but no Father’s Day. Since I had thrown away the receipt, I could not take it back to the store. I should have called the store manager anyway and asked to exchange it, instead I put in Father’s Day where June weddings were.
One can take back music or videos, even rented ones, with vile words or scenes in them and either exchange them or get back ones money.
This book is not reflective of solid professional writing, for anyone– political trends should never be acceptable, in professional writing of any type, except for creative novels! This type of political influence on journalism should be laughed at, and banned by top professionals of the field! A male is a male, and a female is a female, basically– just as you are born! Any deviations from gender norms, are a sign of an extreme medical crisis– or else, mental illness! I think that these suffering people need professional medical care– and should be viewed as medical patients– not as exhibiting a false “norm!”
In state-controlled Communist countries, such as Russia– the State dictates politically, to professionals in the field of journalism– and many other fields, as well! — what and how to go about their professions. They are severely threatened, if they fail to abide by State-imposed political rules! We surely do not need this sort of horrible, leftist political control, manipulation, and coercion of professionals, in America!
Really? You have to police what people say and do. Isn’t THAT what state-controlled Communists do?
YFC— Well-trained, grown-up professionals, abide by mature standards, in their profession– not the latest unprofessional political garbage.
The new sex education. But how do you explain that “it + it does not make baby”?
Insanity is the new norm…and if you don’t like it, you’re crazy!
Our Deity who art in heaven hallowed be thy (genderless) name…
Hail Mary full of grace, something or someone is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst them and the rest of the prayer is redacted…
Glory be to the someone, and to the son of the someone and to the Holy (genderless) Spirit…
I erred. the word “son” implies male…
the internet will probably follow in one of two ways. either offensive pronouns will not be allowed to be displayed in blogs and news reports, ads, OR a form of spellcheck will autoedit and transpose offensive entries to the gende-r correct mandatory term. a retrobot will be sent through the entire cloud and all servers to rewrite alll entries. old headlines like ‘first man on the moon’ will display as ‘first on the moon’.. fuuture bibles will be gender corrected to lessen offense….’he mae them male and female’ will be rendered as ‘they were made’, removing suggestion that a power greater than man was at work.
Change is the only constant. We are no longer living in the XIV century. Him, Her, It does not matter
Wrong! the pendulum always swings back, and sometimes with a vengeance. He, she and it were used in the Twentieth Century, by the way, not just the fourteenth.
This madness will only stop when enough of us pray for it to stop. This is part of the spiritual warfare that we are facing in these end times. Evil is becoming more bold every day. What all this means is that Jesus Christ Lord of Lords True God and True Man is coming soon like a thief in the night. Brothers and sisters in Christ look up for your redemption draws near. Pray America Pray.