AP Stylebook and Briefing on Media Law (Associated Press Stylebook and Briefing on Media Law)

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The world is divided into two types of people: those who wince when they see the words Canadian geese in print, and those who don't. If you are the former, or if you are the latter working for the former, the The Associated Press Stylebook and Libel Manual provides invaluable assistance when you need to get your Canada geese all in a row. Countless newspapers and other publications base their style guides on this manual. The entries are arranged alphabetically and include issues of spelling, punctuation (there is no period in Dr Pepper), grammar, abbreviation, capitalization (Popsicle and Dumpster are, tollhouse cookies aren't), hyphenation (none, surprisingly, in ball point pen), and frequently misused words. There are also longer discussions of things such as Arabic names, chess notation, weather terms, and religious movements. Plus you'll find separate sections on sports writing, business writing, libel, and copyright.

Book Description

Fully revised and updated, the essential handbook for all writers, editors, students, and public relations specialists.

More people write for the Associated Press than for any newspaper in the world, and writers have bought more copies of The AP Stylebook than of any other journalism reference. With this essential guide in hand, any writer can learn to communicate with the clarity and professionalism for which the Associated Press is famous. Fully revised and updated, this edition contains over 5,000 A to Z entries--including more than 50 new ones--laying out the AP's rules on grammar, spelling, punctuation, capitalization, abbreviation, and word and numeral usage. Comprehensive and easy to use, The AP Stylebook provides the facts and references necessary to write accurately about the world today: correct names of countries and organizations, Internet language and search techniques, language to avoid, common trademarks, and the unique guidelines for business and sports reporting. The final word on media law, The AP Stylebook also includes an invaluable section dedicated to crucial advice on how writers can guard against libel and copyright infringement. The veritable "journalist's bible," this is the one reference that working writers cannot afford to be without.

With more than 50 new entries plus updates of more than 100 others, The AP Stylebook includes such features as:
* An A to Z listing of guides to capitalization, abbreviation, spelling, numerals, and usage
* Internet guidelines
* Sports guidelines and style
* Business guidelines and style
* A guide to punctuation
* Supreme Court decisions regarding libel law
* Summary of First Amendment rules
* The right of privacy
* Copyright guidelines
* Proofreaders' marks

Customer Reviews:

Wouldn't write without it.......2007-07-28

Also know as the AP style guide, this book should be every copywriter's and journalist's bookshelf. This is the definitive guide to punctuation, grammar and writing style for magazine and newspaper articles as well as most business writing. And it is vastly different from the style of writing most of us learned in school, which follows the Chicago Manual of Style. If you are thinking about writing for magazines or newspapers, or starting a copywriting business, you absolutely must get a copy of this.

Good Introduction to AP Style.......2007-07-07

I bought this book because I had a client that used the AP Style in their marketing communication and all outgoing documentation had to be reviewed using the AP Style. Being a technical writer, I had not used the AP Style before. Now I have a better understanding of why words are used the way they are in a newspaper. However, about 20% of the AP Style does not apply to technical writing.

AP Stylebook.......2007-05-29

A must have for all print designers. Great reference material for graphic and web designers.

Wanna be a reporter? Duh........2007-02-25

If you aspire to have any sort of career in print or online journalism, you should not need a review to tell you that you need this book. Duh.

However, I am going to give this book only four stars because AP needs to stop being losers and end the silliness of capitalizing the word "Internet" or writing "website" as "Web site." It's dumb.

Great Resource.......2007-01-16

This is a great book for anyone, from an aspiring writer to the accomplished journalist. The information within is very valuable and very well organized.

The Associated Press Stylebook (Associated Press Stylebook and Briefing on Media Law)

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Benefits more than journalists
Associated Press Stylebook

The Associated Press Stylebook (Associated Press Stylebook and Briefing on Media Law)

Manufacturer: Perseus Books Group
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Media & the Law | Law | Subjects | Books

Journalism | Writing | Reference | Subjects | Books

Newspapers & Magazines | Writing | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Reference | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

The Associated Press Guide to Punctuation
Associated Press Guide to Newswriting: The Resource for Professional Journalists
The Chicago Manual of Style
Writing & Reporting News: A Coaching Method (Wadsworth Series in Mass Communication and Journalism)
Reporting for the Media

ASIN: 046500489X

Book Description

The revised edition of the Bible of the newspaper industry.

More people write for The Associated Press than for any newspaper in the world, and writers--nearly two million of them--have bought more copies of The AP Stylebook than of any other journalism reference. It provides facts and references for reporters, and defines usage, spelling, and grammar for editors. There are separate sections for journalists specializing in sports and business, and complete guidelines for how to write photo captions, file copy over the wire, proofread text, handle copyrights, and avoid libel. This edition of The AP Stylebook keeps pace with world events, common usage, and AP procedures.

Customer Reviews:

Benefits more than journalists.......2007-09-04

The title of this book might lead you to think this is just another grammar book--and one with only print journalists in mind. Not so! If you are looking for a guide that will ensure consistency in all of your corporate literature, I highly recommend this book and its companion "Bible," Webster's New World College Dictionary, Fourth Edition. Never again will you have to wonder whether to add a hyphen, capitalize a word or use an abbreviation. To me one of the main reasons why documents can look unprofessional is because writers don't apply consistency in style throughout corporate literature or even throughout the same piece. This book is the ultimate foundation for consistency, clarity and professionalism. And from here you can add your own "house styles," guidelines that are unique to your profession or business. The return on investment on this book is tremendous.

Associated Press Stylebook.......2007-08-23

This us a reference book. It doesn't need a review. It is excellent.

Make No Law: The Sullivan Case and the First Amendment

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Fantastic book
An accessible, left-leaning overview of first-amendment law
Another necessary free speech book
Why press freedom matters...
An important book for media, civil rights, and legal history

Make No Law: The Sullivan Case and the First Amendment
Anthony Lewis
Manufacturer: Vintage
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

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Gideon's Trumpet
Mass Media And American Politics (Mass Media and American Politics)
Major Principles of Media Law, 2006 Edition (with InfoTrac)
The Law of Journalism and Mass Communication with PowerWeb
Thinking Clearly

ASIN: 0679739394
Release Date: 1992-09-01

Book Description

The First Amendment puts it this way: "Congress shall make no law...abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press." Yet, in 1960, a city official in Montgomery, Alabama, sued The New York Times for libel -- and was awarded $500,000 by a local jury -- because the paper had published an ad critical of Montgomery's brutal response to civil rights protests. The centuries of legal precedent behind the Sullivan case and the U.S. Supreme Court's historic reversal of the original verdict are expertly chronicled in this gripping and wonderfully readable book by the Pulitzer Prize -- winning legal journalist Anthony Lewis. It is our best account yet of a case that redefined what newspapers -- and ordinary citizens -- can print or say.

Customer Reviews:

Fantastic book.......2007-02-08

I thought it would be a boring book. Surprise! It is very well written, and it brings tons of historical facts about freedom of speech and of the press in a context of story telling.

An accessible, left-leaning overview of first-amendment law.......2005-03-26

A very familiar, weak joke among my friends is to preface even the most self-apparent advice with the phrase "I am not a lawyer." For example, "I'm not a lawyer, but I'd advise against punching your neighbor in the face." "I'm not a lawyer, but I'd recommend renting The Incredibles instead of Friday the 13th Part 27."

The amazing thing about Anthony Lewis's Make No Law is that it renders that cliched phrase unnecessary. I truly am not a lawyer, but it didn't seem to make a bit of difference while reading this book; I found it a very accessible and readable overview of the history of the first amendment.

Admittedly, that description may not make this sound like a page-turner, but it actually is. In the way that a good teacher can make any subject seem interesting, Anthony Lewis breathes life into even the dullest moments of constitutional history. And when the situations he's describing are truly dramatic (as with the courtroom showdown in the Sullivan case, around which most of this book is structured), Make No Law creates the suspense and intrigue of a great fictional thriller.

It's worth mentioning that Lewis doesn't seem to strive for strict objectivity. In his observations, he frequently advocates for a liberal interpretation of freedom of the press, praising the Supreme Court justices who advanced his views and criticizing as small-minded those who did not. I personally thought that these sections gave depth and context to the facts of the Sullivan case, but those looking for an unbiased journalistic text might look elsewhere.

That minor concern aside, Make No Law is almost perfect as a text for the layperson who wants to understand how one part of the American legal system ticks.

Another necessary free speech book.......2005-01-30

There is little to add to the other reviews. Lewis writes well, on a important enough subject. He idealizes the court's creation of, and support for, free speech doctrine. The importance of the Sullivan case is the crux of the book. Justic Goldberg summed up the result: "A public official from recovering damages for a defamatory falsehood relating to his official conduct unless he proves that the statement was made with 'actual malice'--that is, with knowledge that it was false or with reckless disregard of whether it was false or not." It was, according to Lewis, a victory for free speech and important component in the development of free speech doctrine.
The book is a good read for those interested in free speech issues, the history of which are supremely important in understanding the nature and danger of threats to freedom.

Why press freedom matters..........2003-10-14

A readable account of the libel case that dramatically defined and expanded the scope of press freedom. It's difficult to remember that it was only in the 1960's that these ideas were settled by the Supreme Court. Lewis backgrounds the history of press freedom, or rather government attempts to bridle it by various sedition acts that seemed to appear each generation [Ashcroft's current attempts to inhibit 1st Amendment rights is only the latest in a long series] The last chapters of the book cover libel cases through 1991 when the book went to press. The short section on the Pentagon Papers case is particularly timely.

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An important book for media, civil rights, and legal history.......2003-07-01

As with Gideon's Trumpet, Anthony Lewis (long time New York times columnist who went to Harvard Law so that he could better report on the Supreme Court) manages to explain a complex legal decision, set the decision against its historical background, explain the legal history of the Court's reasoning, and give cogent examples of how the case has been applied--all in a very readable book.

In the early 60's, the struggle for racial justice in the south had reached the boiling point. Bull Connor was using his dogs and hoses against non-violent blacks marching in the streets, and Alabama expelled several university students for sitting in at a restaurant. Martin Luther King had been arrested for tax fraud by the State of Alabama--claiming that SCLC funds had been diverted for his personal use (all charges were eventually dropped). The media was covering these events nationally (and increasingly internationally).

To raise some money, some southern ministers placed an ad in the New York Times, describing some of these events, and asking for money to defend Dr. King against the false charges.

A member of the Birmingham City Council, in a well orchestrated attempt to shut down northern media coverage, sued the New York Times for lible, and won a $500,000 verdict in state court.

These events set the stage for the now famous decision by the United States Supreme Court in New York Times v. Sullivan.

While the decision was unanimous (at least in the result), Lewis digs deeper, and describes the process by which the judges meshed often incompatible views into a coherent rule of law, which continues to be applied today (although, not always as the Court intended).

The intended and unintended consequences which flowed from Sullivan form the third strand of Lewis' book, and are in themselves instructive, but probably not as interesting (they are often both obscure and dated) as those parts of the book (most of it) which focus on the history.

Customer Reviews:

Porn, fundamentalism, and the first amendment.......2000-10-08

What better combo could there be? I'm not a student of law, but I still found this to be a facinating story about its history and importance. The descriptions of Larry Flynt are colorful and often times halarious. Fawell doesn't exactly come out looking like an angel either, but I found Smolla's treatment of both characters to be fair. Ultimately, the conclusion of this book are right on. Flynt and Falwell are both hustlers of the American Dream. They just sell their versions from opposite ends of the spectrum.

Fascinating Insider View of First Amendment Strategizing.......1999-09-02

Rod Smolla knows how to tell a story. We all know Larry Flynt is colorful, what we didn't know is how brilliant his young attorney was in getting the Falwell trial heard in the "Live Free or Die State" when Hustler's distribution there was about 1% of its national sales. A must read for any staunch defender of the First Amendment.

Average customer rating:

A great expose of the N.Y.Times
What a stupid title.
Excellent Investigative Journalism
Very enlightening
Compelling and Informative

Libel by New York Times
Edward J. Pawlick , and J. Edward Pawlick
Manufacturer: Mustardseeds, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Constitutional Law | Law | Subjects | Books

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Customer Reviews:

A great expose of the N.Y.Times.......2004-10-28

As a former regular reader of the Times, I decided that it had lost its credibility more than 20 years ago, but I did not know why. This book exposes a rational reason for what I consider to be the demise of a great paper. While I still obtain it on the week-ends, I now only read the non-news parts of it. Anyone like me, who has been confused by such sentiments, will gain useful insight into the likely reasons for their changes of heart.

What a stupid title........2004-05-21

Sounds like the title is Libel and the author is New York Times

Excellent Investigative Journalism.......2004-03-17

Pawlick exposes the Jason Blair affair as but a glimse of the underlying organizational rot that is the New York Times. He traces the genealogy of Pinch Sulzberger and his disfunctional family. He builds on facts to expose the Sulzberger plan to dominates the Gay Marriage debate with his New York Times and Boston Globe Newspapers. Pawlick has gone where no one else has gone before showing how one sick and disfuntional, yet powerful family and its exquiste propaganda machine can dominate and control the political landscape. Pawlick deserves a pulitzer prize.

Very enlightening.......2004-02-28

WOW: I had some understanding of what was going on with the whole gay marriage issue but Mr. Pawlick's book really clarified things for me. Just reading the same subject in 2 different papers and you can see how slanted the Globe is which I knew was owned by the New York Times. Thanks go out to Mr.Pawlick for enlightening us about the part the New York Times and the Globe played in the whole SJC (fiasco) ruling on gay marriage.

Compelling and Informative.......2004-02-26

Mr. Pawlick puts the whole gay marriage conspiracy in perspective. He clearly lists all the players and the roles they played ousting the citizens of Massachusetts from voting on this monumental question of gay marriage.
If you want to find out why Margaret Marshall voted the way she did and who is behind it - READ THIS BOOK.

The Printer's Trial: The Case of John Peter Zenger and the Fight for a Free Press

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The Zenger Case in Words and Images
Courtesy of Teens Read Too

The Printer's Trial: The Case of John Peter Zenger and the Fight for a Free Press
Gail Jarrow
Manufacturer: Calkins Creek Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Law & Crime | Reference & Nonfiction | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

Politics & Government | Reference & Nonfiction | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Ages 9-12 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1590784324

Customer Reviews:

The Zenger Case in Words and Images.......2007-06-19

Children's writer Gail Jarrow provides an informative and entertaining account of the 1735 trial of printer Peter Zenger, which laid the groundwork for the Bill of Rights' provision for the freedom of the press. While nominally aimed at young adults, Jarrow's book narrates the history of the case in a way that would appeal to historians of all ages.

The narrative itself is based on careful historical scholarship and Jarrow's analysis of primary documents. The book excels at outlining the tense political environment of New York City that led to Zenger being charged for printing seditious statements. Jarrow sheds light on a complicated political fracas involving the colonial governor and a host of regional lawyers and political playmakers. The clarity of the narrative here is a testament to Jarrow's skill as a historical writer.

The book is also beautifully illustrated, with each left-facing page featuring portraits of major figures in the narrative, maps and photographs of historical landmarks, and even reproductions of Zenger's newspaper. These images are accompanied by brief but informative captions that lend texture to the narrative being laid out on the right-facing page. The book's design thus contributes greatly to Jarrow's ability to bring Zenger's case to life for the modern reader.

A fine read throughout. Highly recommended to young adults, college students, and the general reader alike.

Courtesy of Teens Read Too.......2007-04-02

Words are powerful things.

On August 4, 1735, John Peter Zenger was declared "Not Guilty" of seditious libel, therefore setting the groundwork for freedom of the press in what would become the United States. But, the story truly starts much earlier, and there is a lot more to it than I ever imagined.

The most obvious and immediate event that would lead to the trial of Mr. Zenger was the arrival of a new British Governor, William Cosby. Cosby had earned his position through marriage, and a reputation of being difficult. He was also greedy. He demanded money for things he couldn't prove he'd done, for time not working for the people, raised taxes and fees and took the extra money for himself, and demanded that his salary be increased. He insulted and offended not only politicians, but the people he was supposed to be governing. When he decided to sue a well known and liked colonist he abused the court system, hand-picking a jury that was guaranteed to rule in his favor. The Governor hadn't counted on the honesty and integrity of one of the jury members. Governor Cosby lost his case and was furious. The damage was done with the colonists as well. Having seen the true colors of the governor, they resolved to fight back. The New York Weekly Journal was born.

The New York Weekly Journal was created by a group of men who wanted to strike back at the Governor. They wanted to be able to respond to what the Governor said about them, and tell the truth to the people. John Peter Zenger's only involvement was as the printer of the paper. The articles were all written anonymously, but Mr. Zenger didn't have the education or knowledge to have written them. He was the one who set the type in the printing press and put the pages together for distribution.

Insults flew back and forth between Cosby and the Journal for quite some time before Cosby decided to attempt to put a stop to things. Since he couldn't prove who wrote the articles, Cosby had the printer, Mr. Zenger, arrested and charged with seditious libel. And so began the printer's trial, and the beginning of the battle for freedom of the press.

I learned so much from this book.

To begin with, I never really separated the ideas of sedition and libel. Sedition is basically promoting discontent, usually against the government or ruling authority. Libel is intentionally misrepresenting things, in print, in a negative way. So, seditious libel is intentionally printing things in a false and negative way, in order to make people unhappy with their leaders. Obviously not a good thing.

It's also an interesting look at the early politics in our country. People in power who use the system to their advantage. Groups who let unknowing people become scapegoats in order to prove their point. Using a public forum to present your views as the truth, regardless of whether or not they are. Interestingly it's all stuff you can find in politics today. But, thanks to the freedom of the press we get to see all sorts of different viewpoints and ideas, and make up our own minds.

This is the kind of book I wish I'd had to learn about history. It doesn't just give you dates and occurrences, it tells you the story of what happened, and why, and how.

Reviewed by: Carrie Spellman

Protecting the Best Men: An Interpretive History of the Law of Libel (Studies in Legal History)

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Protecting the Best Men: An Interpretive History of the Law of Libel (Studies in Legal History)
Norman L. Rosenberg
Manufacturer: Univ of North Carolina Pr
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Journalism | Writing | Reference | Subjects | Books

Media Studies | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Private Law | Law | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0807816655

Freedom from the Press; A Personal Story of Libel

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A well written tale of one person's victimization.
Tremendously well written insight into a person & a system.
one man's arduous legal struggle for justice against libel

Freedom from the Press; A Personal Story of Libel
Roger Hall
Manufacturer: Maharatha Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

General | Specific Groups | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

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Media & the Law | Law | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0964330466

Book Description

Freedom From The Press is a very personal true story of libel. On Labor Day Sunday in 1991 the Houston Chronicle ran a front page banner headline story as a favor for a powerful Houstonian embroiled in a lawsuit. Their intent was to destroy the reputation of Douglas Wyatt, son of oil industry giant Oscar Wyatt and international socialite Lynn Sakowitz Wyatt -- and member of a cult known as Eternal Values. In pre-trial haste the Chronicle ran a cutline under a two column wide color photograph of the author of Freedom From The Press indicating that he had once been a member of the cult instead of an unwitting recruit who had gathered information from actual former members in an effort to discredit the organization.

The readership of the largest newspaper in Texas understood the article to mean that Roger Hall had participated in the cult's bizarre membership rites and adherence to virulent neo-Nazi dogma; allegations that even the author of the article openly admitted under oath were not true. Within ten days a reputation and business that had taken ten years to build were in ashes. Freedom From The Press really begins at the point of destruction. The madness had only begun as the author entered a legal war pitting him against the most powerful media organization in the world, and elected judiciary dependent upon newspapers, the law itself, and his own depression.

Customer Reviews:

A well written tale of one person's victimization........1999-09-16

Mr. Hall did an excellent job sharing his experience with one of Houston's wealthiest families and the press.

Tremendously well written insight into a person & a system........1999-07-07

Roger Hall provides us an extraordinarily well written opportunity to be personally affected by the devastation that befalls an innocent individual judged guilty by a powerful media greatly influenced by wealthy puppeteers. Hall's transitions between chapters challenge you to put the book down. There is a tremendous amount of honesty and intimacy wrapped around this modern man's encounter with the windmills of Texas. You cannot walk away from this book without an altered perception of the media and the games the powerful play. I re-read this book a year ago and it continues to stir the occassional thought and to provide a filter through which the press is processed. It's a great read -- it's an even better story.

one man's arduous legal struggle for justice against libel.......1999-02-19

Freedom from the Press - A Personal Story of Libel by Roger Hall. Maharatha Books, Middleburg, FL. 1998 (new edition). 334 pp. $16.50 trade paper.

Like the popular nonfiction book A Civil Action made into a movie, Roger Hall1s Freedom from the Press is an absorbing account of an involved lawsuit against a corporate powerhouse by an individual with important personal interests at stake. This author1s case was a libel case against the Houston Chronicle, which in 1991 ran a front-page article accompanied by a photograph implying that Hall had once been a bona fide member of a controversial New York cult rather than an unwitting recruit who had ultimately tried to discredit it. Hall came under extraordinary pressure because in a deposition he tied a local wealthy businessperson named Douglas Wyatt to the cult. This was used by enemies of Wyatt to destroy his reputation through the newspaper article. During one phase of his ordeal, Hall felt his life was threatened. Hall1s small business shortly fell into ruins, and he sunk into a severe depression. But he nonetheless managed to carry out his lawsuit until after some setbacks that would have defeated most persons, he prevailed in the end. Hall relates succinctly the legal procedures and issues at stake, and takes you into his own emotional turmoil. The reader holds his breath pulling for Hall against the powerful interests set against him.

Book Description

Published to coincide with the 25th anniversary of the landmark Supreme Court decision in New York Times v. Sullivan, which changed the face of libel law, this book is the first in-depth examination of the actual malice rule constitutionalized in that decision. The author offers a detailed evaluation of the current status of the rule and produces significant new information about the history and working of libel law. He argues that, contrary to much of the scholarly criticism and opinions expressed in the popular press, the actual malice rule is working and should be retained as an integral feature of libel law. Finally, he proposes some changes which would help libel law work more smoothly and effectively. A significant addition to the body of work on libel law, this book will be an invaluable resource for students of law and journalism as well as to practicing attorneys and journalists. Hopkins begins with an examination of the history of the actual malice rule and the definition Justice Brennan attached to the rule. He explores how the modern definition of actual malice relates to definitions accepted before 1964 and analyzes how the appellate courts have defined and applied the rule since the 1964 decision. Subsequent chapters compare Times Rule Actual Malice with common law actual malice and offer a penetrating discussion of how well the actual malice rule is working in modern libel law. Hopkins concludes that Times Rule Actual Malice is working effectively to balance the interest in robust public debate with the interest in protecting reputation.

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