Using the Stylebook
OJEA Stylebook revised by Stratton 2011
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Purpose
 A style guide or style manual is a set of standards for the
writing and design of documents, either for general use
or for a specific publication, organization or field.
 The implementation of a style guide provides uniformity in
style and formatting of a document.
 This book shows journalistic style as reflected by the
 AP Stylebook
 Webster's New World Dictionary of the American Language
 Oregon student and commercial publications
 Actual classroom usage.
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Contents
 Arranged by
type
There are errors in index.
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Copy preparation
A
4
Capitalization
B
7
Abbreviations
C
11
Identification of People
D
14
Punctuation
E
16
Numerals
F
21
Miscellaneous
G
23
Spelling Guide, Internet Terms
—
24
Sports
H
25
Sports Spelling, League Teams
—
27
Common Area Names & OR
Counties
—
28
Portland Neighborhoods
—
29
Oregon School Districts
—
30
Oregon High Schools
—
32
Copy Editing Symbols &
Applications
—
42
These are some of the most common errors
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A Codes — Copy Prep
 Typeset copy can distinguish
between a hyphen, an em
dash and an en dash. Consult
your manual. The short en
dash (used with dates) is often
Option and Hyphen keys.

The play runs Oct. 15-17.

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Use the longer em dash
with a space before and after
for parenthetical remarks or to
replace a colon. The em dash
is often the Shift, Option and
Hyphen keys.

The questions —
hundreds of them — drove
me crazy.
A Codes — Copy Prep
 Typeset copy uses “smart quotes,” which
are curved rather than straight. Consult your
manual for key sequences for smart quotes.
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
Often it’s Option and Open Bracket
[ keys for the open quote. Example: “

It’s Shift, Option, Open Bracket [ keys
for the close quote. Example: ”

For a down-curved apostrophe, it’s
Option and Close Bracket ] keys. Example:‘

For an up-curved apostrophe, it’s
Shift, Option and Close Bracket. Example: ’

The difference looks like this:

"She can’t sing 'Louie, Louie' because
she doesn’t know the words."

“She can’t sing ‘Louie, Louie’ because
she doesn’t know the words.”
“Smart quotes”
A Codes — Copy Prep
 You may doublespace
typeset copy to make the
printed version easier to
edit.
 Return the leading back to
single-spacing when it is
placed in the page design
program.
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B Codes — Capitalization
 Course titles [also see B48]:
Capitalize only the proper
name for a class.
 If in doubt, consult the
course description guide:

Keyboarding I.
 I take Journalism I fifth
period.
 I’m studying journalism.
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B Codes — Capitalization
 Junior varsity: Capitalize
and do not use periods
when using as a modifier,
as in JV team.
 Otherwise, spell it out and
do not capitalize:

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JV baseball, but junior
varsity football.
C Codes — Abbreviations
 Money: Use the $ and
decimal system for
amounts larger than one
dollar, but omit the
decimal and two zeroes for
even dollars.
 Spell out the word cents,
using numerals for amounts
less than a dollar:

$1 but $1.01
 45 cents, (not $.45, 45
cts., 45¢ or forty-five
cents)
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C Codes — Abbreviations
 Percent: One word do not
use the percent symbol
 45 percent
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C Codes — Abbreviations
 Time of day: Abbreviate
ante meridiem (a.m.)
and post meridiem
(p.m.) using lowercase
letters and periods.
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 Eliminate unnecessary
figures and
redundancies:
 7 a.m., not 7:00
a.m.
 10 tonight, not 10
p.m. tonight
 Thursday at 10 p.m.
C Codes — Abbreviations
DO NOT ABBREVIATE:
a)
names of foreign countries
(except former U.S.S.R.)
b)
days of the week: Monday,
not Mon.
c)
Christmas: never Xmas
d)
personal names: William, not
Wm.; James, not Jas.
e)
percent: one word -- 45
percent; not 45 per cent, never
45% (except in charts or graphs)
f)
cents: 45 cents, not $.45, 45
cts. or 45¢
g) United States: spell out when used
as a noun alone. Use U.S. with
periods when used as an adjective

U.S. government
 U.S. Postal Service
 U.S. Army
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D codes — Identifying People
 On first reference, identify
a person’s title, class or
position.
 Do not use double
identification in sports, such
as sophomore center
Nancy Smith:

Principal Judy
Patterson
 Chet Howlett, history,
 Holly Hurlim, senior,
 center Kristi Brennan.
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D codes — Identifying People
 Use the full name on the
first reference and the last
name only thereafter:
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
Principal Mike Kolb
wore black and white,
North Salem’s school
colors. Kolb sometimes
wears ...

Coach Doug
Hoffmeister lectured the
team at halftime.
Hoffmeister told them ...

Debater Paul Mapp
won first at nationals.
Mapp defeated ...
D codes — Identifying People
 When identifying people
with disabilities, focus on
the individual rather than
the disability.
 Try to mention the person
first and the disability
second, and remember
the person is not the
condition.
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DO SAY
AVOID:
“People with
disabilities.”
“The disabled.”
“A person who
has epilepsy.”
“An epileptic.”
“A man who
has a physical
disability.”
“A physically
disabled man.”
E Codes — Punctuation
Apostrophe
 An apostrophe is
used to form
possessives.
 Exception: its is the
possessive form; it’s
is a contraction
meaning it is.
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E Codes — Punctuation
1. Commas & Independent clause
 A comma is used to separate two
independent clauses joined by the
coordinate conjunctions and, or, nor,
but, yet, or for.
 However, the trend is toward
eliminating the comma when the
clauses are short.
The Dragons won their first game, but
they lost their next two in overtime.
2. Commas & Series
 No comma is needed before and or
or when used in a simple series of
words or phrases.
 A comma is inserted only when
needed for clarity.
The flag is red, white and green.
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E Codes — Punctuation
Italics
 Do not italicize titles of books,
movies, plays, poems, songs,
TV programs, lectures,
speeches or works of art.
Instead, capitalize the
principal words and place
quotation marks around all
such titles, except the Bible
and reference materials such
as almanacs, encyclopedias
and dictionaries.
 Do not italicize names of
groups [see also E42].
The remaining members of The
Beatles are planning a
reunion.
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E Codes — Punctuation
 Periods & commas
 Always place inside
quotation marks.
He said, “I saw the play.”
 Also see Quotations
Marks.
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F Codes — Numerals
 Spell out numerals that
begin sentences or reword
to avoid starting with a
large number.
 Fourteen hundred students
attended Fall Press Day
Oct. 21 at Oregon State.
 Better: Fall Press Day drew
1,400 students to Oregon
State University Oct. 21.
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F Codes — Numerals
1. Spell out one through nine and use
figures for 10 and above.
 nine students
 10 football players
 three tests
 21.5 million

He sold eight cows.
 1,200 people

ninth place
 11th place
2.
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In a series:
 They had 10 cows, four pigs and
67 chickens.
 They had three five-room houses,
11 three-room apartments and 13
10-room houses.
G Codes — Miscellaneous
All statements of opinion or fact not
generally available or known must
be attributed to someone:
Direct quote (the exact words of the
speaker, set in quotation marks):
"Officer Mark Miller has confirmed that the
substance taken from the locker was an illegal
drug," said Police Chief Charles Moose.
"Officer Mark Miller has confirmed that the
substance taken from the locker was an illegal
Slide:drug,” Charles Moose, police chief, said.
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G Codes — Miscellaneous
All statements of opinion or fact
not generally available or known
must be attributed to someone:
Partial quote (a portion of the original
quote is retained while the rest is
paraphrased, but retains the original
intent of the speaker):
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An officer reported that material
removed from the locker was "an
illegal drug," said Police Chief Charles
Moose.
G Codes — Miscellaneous
All statements of opinion or fact
not generally available or known
must be attributed to someone:
Paraphrase (reporter rephrases
original quote, but retains original
meaning):
An illegal substance was recovered
from the locker, according to Police
Chief Charles Moose.
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G Codes — Miscellaneous
All statements of opinion or fact
not generally available or known
must be attributed to someone:
Correcting quotes:
If a quote contains a grammatical
error, obscenity, or cumbersome
wording, paraphrase or partially
quote rather than repeat the
language used.
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If the reporter is uncertain about a
direct quote, either check back with
the speaker or omit the quote.
G Codes — Miscellaneous
All statements of opinion or fact not
generally available or known must be
attributed to someone:
Quoting out of Context:
The meaning of a statement may be
inadvertently changed or even reversed if
care is not taken to retain the original
intent of the quote.
Be sure to have enough information so
that the original message is clear to the
reader.
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
Punctuating quotes: See E40-48.
G Codes — Miscellaneous
Omit the word “that” when its
absence will not affect the
reader’s understanding of the
statement.
Right: He said he was sorry.
Wrong: He said that he was
sorry.
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G Codes — Miscellaneous
Use third person pronouns,
except in direct quotes.
Exception: Use of "the editorial
we” is appropriate in editorials
since they represent staff opinion
rather than the views of an
individual.
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Avoid all other use of
 you
 we
 us
 I
except in an occasional
special feature or column.
G Codes — Miscellaneous
Avoid overuse of school
name and mascot.
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H Codes — Sports
Scores and records are given as
figures.
They won, 7-2. The pitcher’s
record is now 6-5. The final score
was 1-0.
The score was Tillamook 8,
Rainier 6. ... a 5-0 victory ... a 120-2 record
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H Codes — Sports
 Use either boys and girls
or men and women to
designate teams, but be
consistent in use.
 When using boys and
girls, do not use an
apostrophe.
 girls varsity soccer /boys
cross country

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men’s
basketball/women’s
basketball
AP Style states 18+ yrs. are
men and women.
So…
We use boys & girls.
H Codes — Sports
 Capitalize and do not use
periods when
abbreviating junior
varsity.
 Always use JV when it is
used as a modifier, as in
JV team.
 JV softball
 JV boys tennis
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H Codes — Sports
Capitalize official titles of
districts and meets, but lower
case shortened titles.
 District 9 Championship
 District 9
 Midwestern League
 Cowapa League
 State
 district meet
 District 5A Championship
 Pac 12

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The team went to state.