Table 3.

Proposed Revisions to Associated Press Stylebook

Current copy	AGS suggestion
Ages
Use when deemed relevant to the situation. If someone is quoted as saying, I’m too old to get another job the age is relevant. Generally, use ages for profiles, obituaries, significant career milestones, and achievements unusual for the age. Use ages for people commenting or providing information only if their age is relevant to their comments (eg, a teenager’s comment on video games aimed at that age group). Appropriate background, such as a parent of two young children or a World War II veteran, may suffice instead of actual age.	Use when deemed relevant to the situation. If someone is quoted as saying, I’m too old to get another job, the age is relevant. Generally, use ages for profiles, obituaries, significant career milestones, and achievements unusual for the age. Use ages for people commenting or providing information only if their age is relevant to their comments (eg, a teenager’s comment on video games aimed at that age group, a health recommendation based on a study of women in their 80s). Appropriate background, such as a parent of two young children or a World War II veteran, may suffice instead of actual age.
Always use figures. The girl is 15 years old; the law is 8 years old; the 101-year-old house. When the context does not require years or years old, the figure is presumed to be years.	Always use figures. The girl is 15 years old; the law is 8 years old; the 101-year-old house. When the context does not require years or years old, the figure is presumed to be years.
Use hyphens for ages expressed as adjectives before a noun or as substitutes for a noun.	Use hyphens for ages expressed as adjectives before a noun or as substitutes for a noun.
Examples: A 5-year-old boy, but the boy is 5 years old. The boy, 7, has a sister, 10. The woman, 26, has a daughter 2 months old. The race is for 3-year-olds. The woman is in her 30s (no apostrophe).	Examples: A 5-year-old boy, but the boy is 5 years old. The boy, 7, has a sister, 10. The woman, 26, has a daughter 2 months old. The race is for 3-year-olds. The woman is in her 30s (no apostrophe).
See also boy, girl, infant, youth, numerals, and elderly.	See also boy, girl, infant, youth, numerals, and older adult.
Elderly
Use this word carefully and sparingly. Do not refer to a person as elderly unless it is clearly relevant to the story. Apply the same principle to terms such as senior citizen.	An outdated term for older individuals. Use older adult(s) or older person/people instead.
It is appropriate in generic phrases that do not refer to specific individuals: concern for the elderly, a home for the elderly, etc. If the intent is to show that an individual’s faculties have deteriorated, cite a graphic example and give attribution for it. Use age when available and appropriate.	If the intent is to show that an individual’s faculties have deteriorated, cite a graphic example and give attribution for it. Use age when available and appropriate, especially when reporting on research or recommendations for a specific subset of the population. Example: The researchers found that weekly exercise decreased the risk of diabetes among older adults in their 70s and 80s. See older adult.
Older Adult [Proposed Addition]
N/A	The preferred term for a person or people 65 years old or older.
Senior Citizen
Use the term sparingly. See elderly.	An outdated term for older people. Use older adult(s) or older person/people instead. See older adult.