6. Race, ethnicity and gender

Editorial style guides are living, breathing documents that constantly evolve. Most large newsrooms and organizations have their own unique style guides, while many small newsrooms and organizations rely on CP style. These guides are constantly being updated to reflect new terms, company names and social trends that are important to the communities they refer to.

Just think about how language has changed in the time you’ve been alive. Words you once used regularly may no longer be appropriate in the current age.

Check out this newspaper clipping from the Herald, which was published on July 21, 1969, the day after Neil Armstrong landed on the moon. Can you identify any forms of language that seem out of place today?

The language in the article about this historic moment focuses solely on men and their reaction to it. While men everywhere “gasped in admiration,” what were women doing? Why did the reporters feel it was necessary to single out men in their coverage?

To reflect popular usage, The Canadian Press is adopting Black as a proper name for a person's race, capitalized when used in that context. The generic term 'white' remains lowercased @CdnPressNews @CdnPressOntario @CdnPressAlta @CdnPressBiz @CdnPressSports @CdnPressArts

— James McCarten (@CdnPressStyle) June 9, 2020

The Canadian Press Stylebook is now in its 19th edition in large part so it can keep up with the changing times. This module will focus on several important changes that were recently introduced.

On race

Race, ethnicity and gender have been hot topics in Canada and the United States for the past few years, marked by social movements such as Black Lives Matter and protests after a white police officer killed George Floyd, a Black man, in Minnesota on May 25, 2020.

Two weeks later, CP changed its policy on whether to capitalize Black, embracing a capital letter for the word when used in racial terms “to reflect popular usage.”

The decision effectively recognizes Black as a proper name, and thus should be given a capital letter. The term white, by contrast, remains lowercase. Many other newsrooms in Canada changed their style guides to capitalize Black around the same time, including CBC, the Globe and Mail and Toronto’s Now Magazine.

Such decisions marked a significant moment for Canadian journalism. Some journalists had been advocating for such a change for years. Other newsrooms made their own decisions on the subject long before The Canadian Press, such as the Toronto Star, which changed its own style guide to capitalize Black in 2017.

“Why not capitalize these words given how much it matters to those who care deeply about how the media depicts and names them?” Kathy English, who was then the Star’s public editor, wrote in her column at the time. “Why withhold something so simple — but clearly, so meaningful — as an uppercase letter?”

It’s important to note, however, that making such changes isn’t easy. The process is most successful when changes are made in consultation with the communities that will be affected by them.

In 2017, when the Canadian Press released the 18th edition of the CP Stylebook, it included a detailed section on how to refer to Indigenous people after making a decision that the term Indigenous should be capitalized. But the section, which was originally published by an organization called Journalists for Human Rights, was filled with errors. Its publication created controversy, with some Canadian journalists calling for the book to be recalled. The problems were addressed in later print runs of the book.

On gender and sexual orientation

The latest versions of the CP Stylebook also address cultural shifts in how people think about and refer to gender identity and sexual orientation.

CP style prefers the use of the terms “gay” and “lesbian” rather than “homosexual” or “gay.” However, it’s important to be mindful of when it is appropriate to mention someone’s sexual orientation. Always ask yourself: Is this important to the story I am telling? Does it matter in this context?

If a person’s sexual orientation or family status are important for the story, bring them into the process and ask them to clarify how they would like to be identified. It’s a sensitive subject for many people, and they may have preferred terms they would like to use, such as “partner” rather than “husband” or “boyfriend.”

You may also want to ask your interview subject for their preferred pronouns. Many people are including them on name tags and in email signatures these days to ensure people refer to them the way they prefer. Gender-neutral pronouns such as “they” or “them” are appropriate, but CP style encourages journalists to use them sparingly because they can create confusion as to whether you are referring to one person or a group. When in doubt, stick to using the subject’s last name throughout your story instead.

Bringing your interview subject into this process and allowing them to express how they would like to be referred to in your story can help build trust. It can also help your audience develop an understanding of these evolving issues.

Further Reading