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Newsroom style guide

新闻编辑室风格指南

Write like a professional journalist. Follow AP Style. Keep it tight.

像专业记者一样写作。遵循AP Style。语言简洁凝练。

When to use

使用场景

Writing news articles, briefs, or headlines
Editing drafts for publication
Converting interview notes into publishable copy
Writing press releases or media advisories
Creating social media posts for news content

撰写新闻稿件、简讯或标题
编辑待发布的草稿
将采访笔记转化为可发布内容
撰写新闻稿或媒体公告
创作新闻类社交媒体帖子

Core AP Style rules

核心AP Style规则

Numbers

数字

Rule	Example
Spell out one through nine	"three witnesses" not "3 witnesses"
Use numerals for 10 and above	"15 people attended"
Always use numerals for ages	"a 5-year-old girl"
Always use numerals for percentages	"5 percent" (spell out "percent")
Always use numerals for addresses	"123 Main St."
Always use numerals for money	"$5 million" not "five million dollars"
Spell out first through ninth for ordinals	"first place" but "10th anniversary"

Exception: Never start a sentence with a numeral. Rewrite or spell out.

规则	示例
1到9用拼写形式	"three witnesses" 而非 "3 witnesses"
10及以上用阿拉伯数字	"15 people attended"
年龄始终用阿拉伯数字	"a 5-year-old girl"
百分比始终用阿拉伯数字	"5 percent"（"percent"用拼写形式）
地址始终用阿拉伯数字	"123 Main St."
金额始终用阿拉伯数字	"$5 million" 而非 "five million dollars"
序数词1到9用拼写形式	"first place" 但 "10th anniversary"

例外： 句子开头不能用阿拉伯数字，需改写或用拼写形式。

Titles and names

头衔与姓名

Rule	Example
Capitalize formal titles before names	"Mayor Jane Smith said..."
Lowercase titles after names	"Jane Smith, the mayor, said..."
Lowercase titles standing alone	"The mayor said..."
No courtesy titles on second reference	First: "Jane Smith." Second: "Smith"
Use full name on first reference	"Jane Smith" not "Smith" or "Ms. Smith"

Exceptions:

Use courtesy titles in obituaries
Some publications use them for all subjects (house style)

规则	示例
正式头衔在姓名前时大写	"Mayor Jane Smith said..."
头衔在姓名后时小写	"Jane Smith, the mayor, said..."
独立使用的头衔小写	"The mayor said..."
第二次提及时不用尊称头衔	首次："Jane Smith"；第二次："Smith"
首次提及时使用全名	"Jane Smith" 而非 "Smith" 或 "Ms. Smith"

例外：

讣告中使用尊称头衔
部分出版物对所有受访者都使用尊称头衔（报社内部风格）

Attribution

引述

Do	Don't
"said"	"stated," "remarked," "noted," "expressed"
Attribution after quote	Attribution before quote
At first natural pause	At awkward break

Examples:

❌ Bad: Mayor Smith stated, "We are committed to this project."

✅ Good: "We are committed to this project," Mayor Smith said.

✅ Good: "We are committed to this project," said Mayor Jane Smith, who has pushed for the development since 2022.

正确做法	错误做法
使用"said"	使用"stated," "remarked," "noted," "expressed"
引述后加引述来源	引述前加引述来源
在第一个自然停顿处添加引述来源	在尴尬的停顿处添加

示例：

❌ 错误：Mayor Smith stated, "We are committed to this project."

✅ 正确："We are committed to this project," Mayor Smith said.

✅ 正确："We are committed to this project," said Mayor Jane Smith, who has pushed for the development since 2022.

Dates and times

日期与时间

Months:

Abbreviate: Jan., Feb., Aug., Sept., Oct., Nov., Dec.
Don't abbreviate: March, April, May, June, July
Only abbreviate with specific dates: "Sept. 15" but "September 2025"

Times:

Use figures with a.m./p.m.: "9 a.m." not "9:00 a.m."
Noon and midnight: Use the words, not "12 p.m." or "12 a.m."
Time ranges: "9 a.m. to 5 p.m." or "9-11 a.m."

Days:

Capitalize days of the week
Don't abbreviate except in tables
Use "Tuesday" not "on Tuesday" when possible

月份：

缩写：Jan., Feb., Aug., Sept., Oct., Nov., Dec.
不缩写：March, April, May, June, July
仅在搭配具体日期时缩写："Sept. 15" 但 "September 2025"

时间：

用数字搭配a.m./p.m.："9 a.m." 而非 "9:00 a.m."
正午和午夜：用单词表示，而非"12 p.m."或"12 a.m."
时间范围："9 a.m. to 5 p.m." 或 "9-11 a.m."

星期：

星期几首字母大写
除表格外不缩写
尽可能直接用"Tuesday"而非"on Tuesday"

Common word choices

常见用词选择

Use	Instead of
more than	over (for quantities)
fewer	less (for countable items)
less	fewer (for mass nouns)
that	which (for restrictive clauses)
which	that (for nonrestrictive clauses)
said	stated, remarked, noted
about	approximately
because	due to the fact that

使用	替代
more than	over（用于数量时）
fewer	less（用于可数名词）
less	fewer（用于不可数名词）
that	which（用于限制性从句）
which	that（用于非限制性从句）
said	stated, remarked, noted
about	approximately
because	due to the fact that

Restrictive vs. nonrestrictive clauses

限制性与非限制性从句

Restrictive (essential, use "that"):

The bill that passed yesterday includes tax cuts.

(Which bill? The one that passed yesterday.)

Nonrestrictive (extra info, use "which" + comma):

The bill, which passed yesterday, includes tax cuts.

(We already know which bill; the passage is extra info.)

限制性（必要信息，用"that"）：

The bill that passed yesterday includes tax cuts.

（哪项法案？昨天通过的那项。）

非限制性（额外信息，用"which"+逗号）：

The bill, which passed yesterday, includes tax cuts.

（我们已经知道是哪项法案，通过时间是额外信息。）

Formatting rules

格式规则

Paragraphs

段落

Keep paragraphs short: 1-3 sentences
One idea per paragraph
Break up long quotes into multiple paragraphs

段落要短：1-3句话
每段一个核心观点
长引述拆分为多个段落

Headlines

标题

Use sentence case, not title case
No periods at the end
Use present tense for past events: "Council approves budget"
Use infinitive for future events: "Mayor to announce plan"
No exclamation points in hard news

使用句子式大小写，而非标题式大小写
结尾不加句号
过去事件用现在时态："Council approves budget"
未来事件用不定式："Mayor to announce plan"
硬新闻中不使用感叹号

Quotation marks

引号

Periods and commas always go inside
Colons and semicolons always go outside
Question marks and exclamation points: inside if part of quote, outside if not

句号和逗号始终放在引号内
冒号和分号始终放在引号外
问号和感叹号：若属于引述内容则在引号内，否则在引号外

Abbreviations

缩写

Spell out on first reference, then abbreviate
Don't use periods in most abbreviations: FBI, CIA, NATO
State abbreviations: Use postal codes (NY, CA) only with full addresses; otherwise use AP abbreviations or spell out

首次提及用拼写形式，之后用缩写
大多数缩写不加句点：FBI, CIA, NATO
州名缩写：仅在完整地址中使用邮政编码（NY, CA）；否则使用AP缩写或拼写形式

Ledes (opening paragraphs)

导语（开头段落）

The inverted pyramid

倒金字塔结构

Most important information first. Answer the key questions:

Who is involved?
What happened?
When did it happen?
Where did it happen?
Why did it happen? (if known)
How did it happen? (if relevant)

最重要的信息放在最前面。回答核心问题：

谁参与其中？
发生了什么？
何时发生的？
何地发生的？
为什么会发生？（若已知）
如何发生的？（若相关）

Lede length

导语长度

Aim for 35 words or fewer
One sentence is ideal
Focus on the news, not background

❌ Too long:

The city council, which has been debating the issue for several months and heard from dozens of residents at multiple public meetings, voted Tuesday night to approve a controversial new zoning ordinance that would allow high-rise buildings in the downtown area.

✅ Better:

The city council approved a zoning ordinance Tuesday that allows high-rise buildings downtown, ending months of debate.

目标控制在35字以内
理想状态为一句话
聚焦新闻本身，而非背景信息

❌ 过长：

The city council, which has been debating the issue for several months and heard from dozens of residents at multiple public meetings, voted Tuesday night to approve a controversial new zoning ordinance that would allow high-rise buildings in the downtown area.

✅ 优化后：

The city council approved a zoning ordinance Tuesday that allows high-rise buildings downtown, ending months of debate.

Types of ledes

导语类型

Hard news lede:

A fire killed three people in Northeast Philadelphia early Tuesday.

Feature lede:

The last time Maria Rodriguez saw her mother, she promised to bring her to America.

Question lede (use sparingly):

What happens when a city runs out of money?

硬新闻导语：

A fire killed three people in Northeast Philadelphia early Tuesday.

特稿导语：

The last time Maria Rodriguez saw her mother, she promised to bring her to America.

提问式导语（谨慎使用）：

What happens when a city runs out of money?

Quick reference card

快速参考卡

Before you publish

发布前检查

Red flags

警示信号

"Very" or "extremely" in news copy
Exclamation points
First-person pronouns (unless first-person piece)
Unattributed opinions
Passive voice hiding who did what
Starting sentences with "There is" or "There are"

新闻内容中出现"Very"或"extremely"
感叹号
第一人称代词（除非是第一人称稿件）
无来源的观点
用被动语态掩盖行为主体
句子以"There is"或"There are"开头

Example transformations

示例转换

Before (informal notes):

Yesterday the Mayor said that he was "very excited" about the new $5,000,000 project that will create over 100 jobs.

After (AP Style):

Mayor John Smith said Tuesday he was "very excited" about the $5 million project, which will create more than 100 jobs.

Before:

The meeting started at 9:00 AM on Monday, October 14th, 2024.

After:

The meeting began at 9 a.m. Monday, Oct. 14, 2024.

Before:

5 protesters were arrested at the rally.

After:

Five protesters were arrested at the rally.

Before:

Smith stated that he believed the project would be "transformative."

After:

Smith said he believed the project would be "transformative."

转换前（非正式笔记）：

Yesterday the Mayor said that he was "very excited" about the new $5,000,000 project that will create over 100 jobs.

转换后（符合AP Style）：

Mayor John Smith said Tuesday he was "very excited" about the $5 million project, which will create more than 100 jobs.

转换前：

The meeting started at 9:00 AM on Monday, October 14th, 2024.

转换后：

The meeting began at 9 a.m. Monday, Oct. 14, 2024.

转换前：

5 protesters were arrested at the rally.

转换后：

Five protesters were arrested at the rally.

转换前：

Smith stated that he believed the project would be "transformative."

转换后：

Smith said he believed the project would be "transformative."

House style notes

报社内部风格说明

Different publications have their own style guides that override AP Style. Common variations:

Oxford comma (AP doesn't use it; many publications do)
Courtesy titles (AP doesn't use them; NYT does)
Web style (some publications use "website" vs. AP's "website")

Always ask about house style before writing for a new publication.

Based on the Associated Press Stylebook. Check the current AP Stylebook for updates and edge cases.

不同出版物有自己的风格指南，可能会覆盖AP Style。常见差异：

牛津逗号（AP Style不使用；许多出版物使用）
尊称头衔（AP Style不使用；《纽约时报》使用）
网络风格（部分出版物使用"website" vs. AP's "website"）

为新出版物撰稿前，务必确认其内部风格。

基于《Associated Press Stylebook》。如需更新内容和边缘案例，请查阅最新版AP Stylebook。