DHS Writing Style Guide (December 2020July 2014).pdf

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 0

DHS Writing Style Guide

December 2020

U.S. Department of Homeland Security Office of Public Affairs

U.S. government publications are not subject to copyright protection; however, we appreciate the foundational work of the U.S. Energy Information Administration and American Forces Press Service. Their work contributed significantly to this guide.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 0

Contents Introduction

Chapter 1: DHS Supplement to AP Stylebook…

Quick Tips—Style, Writing, and Grammar Tips

Chapter 2: Editorial Voice and Words and Phrases to Avoid

Chapter 3: Advice for Good Writing

Chapter 4: Grammar

Chapter 5: Commonly Misused Words

Appendix A: Sample Media Advisory

Appendix B: Sample News Release

Appendix C: Sample Readout…

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 1

Introduction

1. Using the DHS Writing Style Guide

Why a Writing Style Guide?

American novelist and short story writer Nathaniel Hawthorne once said that easy reading is very hard writing. A few years after Hawthorne Abraham Lincoln was credited for an apology that he wrote such a long letter because he didn’t have time to write a short one. As communicators we write to create shared meaning, and essential to this task are consistency, clarity, conciseness, and credibility.

The Department generally adheres to the journalistic writing style presented in the Associated Press (AP) Stylebook. As with many organizations DHS departs from AP style in some areas.

This DHS Writing Style Guide seeks to promote the Department’s writing style, and help the Department’s writers produce consistent, grammatically correct, clear, and concise content.

Those elements, consistently applied, add credibility to the message and messenger.

This guide seeks to help those writers who may have wrestled with the following questions:

Should I keep using executive titles or just use last name on subsequent use?

What punctuation should I use for bullets?

Which one is correct: Which or that?

Is it better to write who or that in reference to a person?

How can I avoid masculine/feminine pronouns and maintain correct grammar?

Quickly find answers to these questions—and most other style-related questions—in this Guide.

Do these guidelines apply to print and Web content?

Yes. This Guide will help writers produce uniform documents, regardless of office, function, or type of publication. The purpose of the Guide is to provide style consistency in all DHS content. It addresses some issues that are particular to writing for the Web, but most of the advice crosscuts writing for news, reports, website content, and even PowerPoint presentations. For additional information about writing for DHS websites, see the DHS.gov Content Standards and Plain Language requirements on DHS Connect. For DHS intranet style, see the DHS Connect Page Development Guidelines and Story Submission Guidelines on DHS Connect.

Do these rules apply to official correspondence and technical publications?

No. This Guide only applies to public affairs products though others are welcomed to use it.

Public affairs products generally are external publications such as press releases, print and Web articles, facts sheets, and marketing/informational materials. You should consult your component’s Public Affairs office for specific product types.

http://dhsconnect.dhs.gov/org/offices/opa/web/Pages/Content-Standards.aspx http://dhsconnect.dhs.gov/org/offices/opa/web/Pages/Plain-Language.aspx http://dhsconnect.dhs.gov/org/offices/opa/web/Pages/Plain-Language.aspx http://dhsconnect.dhs.gov/org/offices/opa/Pages/DHS-Connect-Page-Development-Guidelines.aspx http://dhsconnect.dhs.gov/org/offices/opa/Pages/DHS-Connect-Page-Development-Guidelines.aspx http://dhsconnect.dhs.gov/org/offices/opa/Pages/Story-Submission-Guidelines.aspx

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 2

Are these hard-and-fast rules?

This is a writing style guide, so it seeks to guide consistency. Many style issues are preferences and not rules. Writers and editors frequently have differing opinions. Famous style guides differ on specific points. Our goal is to provide guidance on style issues, so that DHS content has some degree of uniformity that conveys public affairs professionalism.

Style consistency enhances our credibility. Inconsistencies in style or misused words may cause readers to question the accuracy of our information. A uniform style tells readers that DHS has high quality standards for our words as well as our programs and our numbers.

Where can I get more guidance on editorial style?

There are a number of writing styles with conflicting recommendations. The DHS Office of Public Affairs generally follows The Associated Press (AP) Stylebook with a few exceptions that are noted within the pages of this Guide. The most popular style guides include:

o The Associated Press Stylebook, the authoritative style manual for journalists and public affairs professionals. DHS generally follows the AP Stylebook.

o U.S. Government Publishing Office (GPO) Style Manual, an authoritative source of information about issues that are specific to writing for the federal government o The Chicago Manual of Style, among the most widely used style manuals.

o Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, DHS' "official" dictionary

Other sources consulted in this Guide:

Grammar Girl’s Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing, Mignon Fogarty, 2008 Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of English Usage The Elements of Style, William Strunk and E.B. White, 1999 OECD Style Guide, second edition, 2007

This Guide has been provided by the DHS Office of Public Affairs. Please contact us at

(202) 282-8010 with questions, comments, or suggestions for improvement in the next update to this publication.

2. General Tips for Writing Well at DHS

Use short sentences Short declarative sentences written in the active voice are easier to read, so try to write sentences of no more than 20 to 30 words. Consider breaking a longer sentence into two or eliminating unnecessary words.

http://www.apstylebook.com/ https://www.govinfo.gov/collection/gpo-style-manual?path=/GPO/U.S.%20Government%20Publishing%20Office%20Style%20Manual http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/home.html http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 3

Use short paragraphs Avoid long paragraphs or large blocks of text. Long paragraphs are daunting and difficult for readers to scan. Try to write paragraphs of no more than two to three sentences; even paragraphs as short as one sentence are fine. Use bullets to highlight lists of points.

Avoid jargon Jargon may be appropriate when writing exclusively for experts. However, our Web content, internal news, and external information must be accessible to a wide range of readers, from experts to novices. As much as possible choose non-technical terms so readers can best understand the material. If jargon or technical language is unavoidable be sure to explain the term in simple language. Where possible provide a link to a glossary definition or other source material. To make the concept clear to everyone be certain to provide an example or an analogy.

Be consistent Good writing is built on patterns, so be consistent.

Consistent terminology: Don’t call it a tornado in some instances and wind storm in others.

Consistent abbreviations: Follow AP Stylebook and spell out abbreviated text on first reference.

Consistent punctuation: For example, always place commas and periods inside quotations marks.

Consider the audience The best writers anticipate, and answer, their readers’ questions. Identify intended readers before writing. Think about what they may already know and what they will want to know about the topic. Assume nothing. United Press International (UPI) used to tell its reporters and editors to “write for the Kansas City milkman.”

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 4

Chapter 1: DHS Supplement to AP Stylebook

While DHS writing style frequently defaults to the AP Stylebook, there are some critical departures from that Stylebook. They are codified within the following pages.

1. Abbreviations and acronyms

The AP Stylebook entry covers most situations. Avoid alphabet soup, and only use abbreviations and acronyms the reader recognizes quickly. This guideline is applied differently in externally focused content, such as news releases, than on internally focused content, such as intranets.

Most abbreviations made up of initial letters from two or more words do not take periods — FEMA, TSA, DHS. There are some exceptions, among them U.S. and U.N.

As a rule make every effort to limit use of acronyms to those approved for second or subsequent reference by the AP Stylebook and those listed here. Introduce the acronym no more than two sentences from the first spelled out reference; if that’s not possible, don’t use the acronym. Remember, the fact an acronym or abbreviation is acceptable for second and subsequent reference does not make its use mandatory. Clarity and ease of reading rules apply.

Proper noun Approved abbreviation Federal Emergency Management Agency FEMA (on first reference when the agency is in the media for disaster response, and second and subsequent references)

Transportation Security Administration TSA (on second and subsequent references) United Nations U.N. (on second and subsequent reference) United States U.S. (use periods when used as an adjective) U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services USCIS (on second and subsequent references) U.S. Coast Guard U.S. Coast Guard (external) USCG (internal) U.S. Customs and Border Protection CBP (on second and subsequent references) U.S. Department of Homeland Security DHS (on second and subsequent references) U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement ICE (on second and subsequent references) U.S. Secret Service U.S. Secret Service (external) USSS (internal) Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency

CISA (on second and subsequent references)

2. Addresses

Use the standard abbreviations found in the AP Stylebook for the states that are abbreviated when used with a city or town, but use the U.S. Postal Service’s two-letter abbreviations in mailing addresses.

In the body of the story: The FEMA Region IV office is located at 3003 Chamblee Tucker Rd., Atlanta.

As an address: FEMA Region VI 800 North Loop 288, Denton, Texas.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 5

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 6

3. Armed forces, armed services, military services, uniformed services Armed forces, armed services and military services are synonymous and refer to U.S. Army, U.S. Navy, U.S. Air Force, U.S. Marine Corps and U.S. Coast Guard. Uniformed services refer to the armed services, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the officer corps of the U.S. Public Health Service, so use it only when that’s the intent.

4. Brackets

Use brackets, not parentheses, to enclose changed words or insertions within direct quotations.

Wrong: “The month (of May) was chosen to commemorate the many cultural contributions of Asian American and Pacific Islanders.”

Correct: “The month [of May] was chosen to commemorate the many cultural contributions of Asian American and Pacific Islanders.”

5. Bulleted items

Introduce the bulleted items with a colon at the end of the text immediately preceding them.

Indicate bullets with a symbol or double hyphen with one space between the symbol/double hyphen and the text that follows, and treat each bullet as a separate paragraph. Use parallel construction. Make each bullet a single thought, no more than one sentence or appropriate fragment, and keep items short. If you cannot contain the bulleted item in one sentence abandon the bullet construction. Capitalize the first letter of each bulleted item even if the bullets continue or complete a sentence begun in the preceding text. If the bulleted item is a complete sentence close with a period. If not use a semicolon. If bulleted items are complete sentences do not use and before last item. If the bullets are not complete sentences then use and after the semicolon of the next-to-last bullet.

6. Capitalization

Follow AP’s guidelines: In general, avoid unnecessary capitals. Use a capital letter only if you can justify it by one of the principles listed here. Many words and phrases, including special cases, are listed separately in the AP Stylebook.

Entries that are capitalized without further comment should be capitalized in all uses.

If there is no relevant listing in the AP Stylebook for a particular word or phrase consult Webster’s New World College Dictionary. Use lowercase if the dictionary lists it as an acceptable form for the sense in which the word is being used. Avoid capitalizing state, nation, government, and federal when used as a common noun: state of Georgia, state of Maine.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 7

PROPER NOUNS: Capitalize nouns that constitute the unique identification for a specific person, place, or thing: John, Mary, America, Boston, England. Some words, such as the examples just given, are always proper nouns. Some common nouns receive proper noun status when they are used as the name of a particular entity: General Electric, Gulf Oil.

PROPER NAMES: Capitalize common nouns such as party, river, street and west when they are an integral part of the full name for a person, place or thing: Democratic Party, Mississippi River, Fleet Street, West Virginia. Lowercase these common nouns when they stand alone in subsequent references: the party, the river, the street. Lowercase the common noun elements of names in plural uses: the Democratic and Republican parties, Main and State streets, lakes Erie and Ontario. Exception: plurals of formal titles with full names are capitalized: Presidents Jimmy Carter and Gerald R. Ford.

POPULAR NAMES: Some places and events lack officially designated proper names but have popular names that are the effective equivalent: the Combat Zone (a section of downtown Boston), the Main Line (a group of Philadelphia suburbs), the South Side (of Chicago), the Badlands (of South Dakota), the Street (the financial community in the Wall Street area of New York). The principle also applies to shortened versions of the proper names of one-of-a-kind events: the Series (acceptable after first reference for the World Series), the Derby (acceptable after first reference for the Kentucky Derby). This practice should not be interpreted as a license to ignore the general practice of lowercasing the common noun elements of a name when they stand alone.

DERIVATIVES: Capitalize words that are derived from a proper noun and still depend on it for their meaning: American, Christian, Christianity, English, French, Marxism, Shakespearean.

Lowercase words that are derived from a proper noun but no longer depend on it for their meaning: french fries, herculean, manhattan cocktail.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 8

SENTENCES: Capitalize the first word in a statement that stands as a sentence. In poetry capital letters are used for the first words of some phrases that would not be capitalized in prose.

COMPOSITIONS: Capitalize the principal words in the names of books, movies, plays, poems, operas, songs, radio and television programs, works of art, etc.

TITLES: Capitalize formal titles when used immediately before a name. Lowercase formal titles when used alone or in constructions that set them off from a name by commas, i.e., President Lincoln and the president. Use lowercase at all times for terms that are job descriptions rather than formal titles.

7. Counter- AP’s rules in prefixes apply, but in general, no hyphen. For example, write counteract, counterterrorism and counter-clockwise.

8. Cutlines

A cutline is the caption near a photo in a newspaper or other publication. Write in present tense, identifying recognizable people left to right with full name and title, and including the year in dates. Use a colon at the beginning of the lead sentence or commas in the body of the sentence to indicate a person’s relative position in the photo. Any photo with three people or less should identify all parties and not just the principal. The form:

Department of Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, 3rd from left, and TSA Administrator Pekoske, right, receive a briefing of U.S. Customs and Border Protection on Jan. 14, 2018.

Official DHS photo by Tim Godbee.

Left to right: FEMA Administrator Pete Gaynor, TSA Administrator David Pekoske, and DHS Secretary John Kelly discuss mutual interests after a Jan. 14, 2018, meeting at DHS. Official DHS photo by Tara Molle.

See also: photo credits

9. Cyber-, Cyberspace

Follow AP’s guidance: Cyberspace is a term popularized by William Gibson in the novel “Neuromancer” to refer to the digital world of computer networks. It has spawned numerous words with cyber- prefixes, but try to avoid most of these coinages.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 9

When the combining form is used follow the general rule for prefixes and do not use a hyphen before a word starting with a consonant: cyberbullying, cybercafe, cybersecurity. Cyberattack is a noted exception to the hyphenation rule since attack begins with a vowel. Examples:

cyber-ethics, cyber-extortion, cyber-university.

10. Datelines

For a list of stand-alone dateline cities, see datelines entry in the AP Stylebook. Within news releases and advisories use all caps for the community, followed by the state, as appropriate, in abbreviated style. AP’s guidelines apply as to whether a locale in a dateline needs a state or country.

Use a locale in a dateline only when you actually reported or wrote the story there. Use of the word “here” in the story is understood to mean the datelined community, and is preferable to repeating the community, especially in the lead.

For example: WASHINGTON – Lead sentence

For stories gathered en route, but filed from the destination, use the destination as the dateline and explain in the story that the official spoke to reporters while en route to the destination.

Statements do not contain a dateline unless they are generated outside the office.

11. Dates

Use yesterday, today, tomorrow or the date – not the day of the week -- for all time references.

Because each release, advisory, or blog entry is dated, yesterday, today and tomorrow are understood easily. Days of the week become meaningless in a story that’s read days, weeks or months after it was written. Use the year in the body of a story only when confusion may result without it, and set it off by commas; the verb tense normally is adequate to convey the previous or next year. Be especially alert to that early and late in years. When writing in January 2018 and referring to something that happened two months prior, it’s sufficient to say it happened in November. When writing in December 2019 about something that will happen a month later, it’s sufficient to say it will happen in January. Always include the year with dates in cutlines.

12. Departments

Follow AP style: The following are the U.S. government departments: Department of Agriculture (USDA acceptable on second reference); Department of Commerce; Department of Defense (DOD or Pentagon acceptable on second reference); Department of Education;

Department of Energy (DOE acceptable on second reference);

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 10

Department of Health and Human Services (HHS acceptable on second reference); Department of Homeland Security (DHS acceptable on second reference); Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD acceptable on second reference); Department of the Interior;

Department of Justice (DOJ acceptable on second reference); Department of Labor;

Department of State (State acceptable on second reference); Department of Transportation (DOT acceptable on second reference); Department of the Treasury (Treasury acceptable on second reference), and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA acceptable on second reference).

Avoid acronyms when possible. A phrase such as the department is preferable on second reference because it is more readable and avoids alphabet soup. (Lowercase the department whenever it stands alone unless it’s necessary to differentiate a department or office from the actual Department.)

Lowercase department in plural uses, but capitalize the proper name element: the departments of Labor and Justice, the Labor and Justice departments.

13. Ellipsis ( ... ) In general, treat an ellipsis as a three-letter word, constructed with three periods and two spaces, as shown above. Use an ellipsis to indicate the deletion of one or more words in condensing quotes, texts and documents. Be especially careful to avoid deletions that would distort the meaning. Construct quotes so an ellipsis doesn’t begin or end a portion of the quote adjacent to attribution presented within it. The ellipsis entry in the AP Stylebook provides more details and examples.

14. First lady

As an exception to AP style, capitalize as a formal title when used before a name. Lowercase in other uses. Never use the abbreviation FLOTUS in public affairs products.

15. Headlines

Write in historical present tense, using telegraphic English and subject-verb-object structure.

Capitalize all significant words and prepositions of four or more letters. More guidelines:

-- Avoid negatives. Wrong: Not Too Late to Register. Right: Time Remains to Register.

-- Include attribution in headlines that express opinions.

-- Keep headlines short. They should fit in a single line on the page -- Avoid all but instantly recognizable abbreviations and acronyms.

-- Per AP headline guidelines, use numerals for all numbers, even those less than 10.

-- As an exception to AP guidelines DHS uses periods in its headlines for U.S.

-- Use single quotation marks.

-- Use a comma to represent the word and.

-- Limit use of last names in headlines (and leads, for that matter) to well-known people.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 11

16. He/she, he or she, his/her, his or her, them/their Avoid the perception that your writing is gender-biased, but never use “he or she” or “his or her” except in quoted matter. Writing in third-person plural avoids the need to use gender-specific pronouns or the temptation to mix plural pronouns with single antecedents.

Wrong: An employee is accountable for their actions. They must take responsibility seriously.

Correct, but awkward: An employee is accountable for his or her actions. He or she must take responsibility seriously.

Best: Employees are accountable for their actions. They must take responsibility seriously.

17. IG

No periods - IG Acceptable for second and subsequent references to inspector general.

18. Improvised explosive device The term is applied to a variety of explosive devices, yet DHS prefers the plain-English term:

homemade bomb or roadside bomb.

19. In order to, in order for

Shorten to to or for.

20. Job titles See also Titles. In all public affairs documents (internal and external), full titles must be used to highlight component, subcomponent, title and full name. In maintaining departmental preference to capitalize titles and follow the AP Stylebook, DHS prefers to place titles before the name, where it is capitalized as a formal title. Placing the title behind the name, after a comma, it is lower case and parenthetical.

For example: Earlier today, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Director Jeanette Manfra testified…

DHS Preferred: Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen traveled… Wrong: Kirstjen Nielsen, Secretary of Homeland Security, traveled…

21. Medevac

Acceptable as a noun or adjective in all references for medical evacuation, as it pertains to a military or U.S. Coast Guard mission. Do not use as a verb.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 12

22. Metric measurements Convert metric measurements to those used in the United States. A conversion calculator is available at http://www.worldwidemetric.com/measurements.html.

23. Months Follow AP’s guidelines. Avoid the wordy and redundant construction the month of.

24. Non-

Follow AP’s guidelines. In general hyphenate when used with proper nouns.

25. Paragraph breaks No indentation. Indicate paragraph breaks by a blank line.

26. Photo credits

A photo credit should follow every cutline formatted as the final sentence in the cutline.

For official photos when the photographer’s identity is known:

Official DHS photo by Ansel Abrams Official Coast Guard photo by Lt. Patricia Bonds

For official photos when the photographer is not known, but the affiliation is:

Official DHS photo Official Coast Guard photo

For unofficial photos when the person who provided it also is the photographer:

Courtesy photo by FEMA Reservist Thomas Smith

For unofficial photos when the person who provided it is not the photographer, but the photographer’s identity is known: Photo by Margaret L. Bundy, courtesy of Operation Homefront

For unofficial photos when the photographer’s identity is not known: Photo courtesy of Operation Homefront or Courtesy photo

If a photo from a civilian media outlet is used, obtain and express permission to use it: Photo by Sam Saunders, Belleville (Ill.) News-Democrat, used by permission http://www.worldwidemetric.com/measurements.html

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 13

27. Pre-position (v.), pre-positioned (adj. and past tense v.)

Use a hyphen when referring to supplies and equipment positioned before an anticipated event.

He pre-positioned the podium before the press conference.

The hyphen construction avoids confusion with preposition, a part of speech.

28. Prefixes

Follow AP’s guidelines:

Generally do not hyphenate when using a prefix with a word starting with a consonant.

– Use a hyphen if the prefix and word begin with the same vowel. (Except: cooperate and coordinate)

– Use a hyphen if the word that follows is capitalized.

– Use a hyphen to join doubled prefixes: sub-subparagraph.

29. President / Vice President

Always use before the last name and always capitalize. Drop the title after first reference only if its repeated use affects ease of reading. Never use the abbreviations POTUS or VPOTUS in public affairs products.

Include the lower case former preceding the title for all presidents and vice presidents no longer serving in that office. Include the hyphenated suffix –elect to the title of an elected president who has not yet been inaugurated.

Correct: President Trump declared… Correct: Prior to his first inauguration, President-elect Trump visited… Correct: former President George W. Bush attended… Correct: former Presidents George W. Bush, Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter attended…

30. Preventive

Not preventative.

31. Quotations and attribution Quotes in a news release represent prime space on a page. Words between quote marks are very important because reporters can paraphrase everything else in your release. If they use your quote they must use your language. Do not waste words on a simple factual statement that is not quotable.

Attribution for opinions or for material that is not common knowledge is essential to DHS credibility.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 14

Attribute early, preferably at the first natural break. Use past tense: said, not says.

Wrong: “Addressing our leadership vacancies is my top priority,” says John Doe, human capital officer.

Correct: “Addressing our leadership vacancies is my top priority,” said John Doe, human capital officer.

32. Ranks – Coast Guard

Rank Rank / Grade USCG Internal Abbreviation

AP Style Rank Rank / Grade USCG Internal Abbreviation

AP Style

Seaman Recruit / E-1

SR

Seaman Recruit

Seaman Apprentice / E-2

SA

Seaman Apprentice

Seaman / E-3

SN

Seaman

Petty Officer 3rd Class / E-4

PO3

Petty Officer 3rd Class

Petty Officer 2nd Class / E-5

PO2

Petty Officer 2nd Class

Petty Officer 1st Class / E-6

PO1

Petty Officer 1st Class

Chief Petty Officer / E-7

CPO

Chief Petty Officer

Senior Chief Petty Officer / E-8

SCPO

Senior Chief Petty Officer

Master Chief Petty Officer / E-9

MCPO

Master Chief Petty Officer

Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard / E-9

MCPOCG

Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard

Chief Warrant Officer 2

CWO2

Chief Warrant

Chief Warrant Officer 3

CWO3

Chief

Chief Warrant Officer 4

CWO4

Chief

Ensign / O-1

ENS

Ensign

Lieutenant Junior Grade / O-2

LTJG

Lt. j.g.

Lieutenant / O-3

LT

Lt.

Lieutenant Commander / O-4

LCDR

Lt. Cmdr.

Commander / O-5

CDR

Cmdr.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 15

Captain / O-6

CAPT

Capt.

Rear Admiral (lower half) / O-7

RDML

Rear Adm.

Rear Admiral / O-8

RADM

Rear Adm.

Vice Admiral / O-9

VADM

Vice Adm.

Admiral / O-10

ADM

Adm.

33. Resilience The quality that manifests being resilient. Many people refer to this quality as “resiliency” – a word that appears in some dictionaries, but is a colloquial construction that contains a superfluous syllable. The goal of style is consistency, so DHS prefers resilience. Exception: If a facility or program contains a formal name that includes resiliency, for example, Regional Resiliency Assessment Program, use that name, but ensure the word “resilience” otherwise is used appropriately throughout the article.

34. Single Space after periods DHS follows the AP Stylebook, which states: “Use a single space after a period at the end of a sentence.” A double space is correct too. Consistency is key.

35. State names On May 1, 2014, Associated Press style changed for the handling of state names. Follow these guidelines:

SPELL OUT: The names of the 50 U.S. states should be spelled out when used in the body of a story, whether standing alone or in conjunction with a city, town, village or military base. No state name is necessary if it is the same as the dateline.

EIGHT NOT ABBREVIATED: The names of eight states are never abbreviated in datelines or text: Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Ohio, Texas and Utah. (These include the two states that are not part of the contiguous United States and those that contain five or fewer letters.)

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 16

IN THE BODY OF STORIES: Except for cities that stand alone in datelines, use the state name in textual material when the city or town is not in the same state as the dateline, or where necessary to avoid confusion: Springfield, Massachusetts, or Springfield, Illinois. Provide a state identification for the city if the story has no dateline, or if the city is not in the same state as the dateline. However, cities that stand alone in datelines may be used alone in stories that have no dateline if no confusion would result. Remember the comma after the state when it’s not at the end of a sentence.

ABBREVIATIONS REQUIRED: Use the state abbreviations listed at the end of this section:

-- In conjunction with the name of a city, town, village or military base in most datelines.

See datelines for examples and exceptions for large cities.

-- In lists, agate, tabular material, nonpublishable editor’s notes and credit lines.

-- In short-form listings of party affiliation: D-Ala., R-Mont. See party affiliation entry for details.

Following are the state abbreviations, which also appear in the entries for each state (postal code abbreviations in parentheses):

Ala. (AL) Del. (DE) Ky. (KY) Miss. (MS) N.J. (NJ) Ore. (OR) Vt. (VT) Ariz. (AZ) Fla. (FL) La. (LA) Mo. (MO) N.M. (NM) Pa. (PA) Va. (VA) Ark. (AR) Ga. (GA) Md. (MD) Mont. (MT) N.Y. (NY) R.I. (RI) Wash. (WA) Calif. (CA) Ill. (IL) Mass. (MA) Neb. (NE) N.C. (NC) S.C. (SC) W.Va. (WV) Colo. (CO) Ind. (IN) Mich. (MI) Nev. (NV) N.D. (ND) S.D. (SD) Wis. (WI) Conn. (CT) Kan. (KS) Minn. (MN) N.H. (NH) Okla. (OK) Tenn. (TN) Wyo. (WY)

These are the postal code abbreviations for the eight states that are not abbreviated in datelines or text: AK (Alaska), HI (Hawaii), ID (Idaho), IA (Iowa), ME (Maine), OH (Ohio), TX (Texas), UT (Utah). Also: District of Columbia (DC).

Use the two-letter Postal Service abbreviations only with full addresses, including ZIP code.

PUNCTUATION: Place one comma between the city and the state name, and another comma after the state name, unless ending a sentence or indicating a dateline: He was traveling from Nashville, Tennessee, to Austin, Texas, en route to his home in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

She said Cook County, Illinois, was Mayor Daley’s stronghold.

HEADLINES: Avoid using state abbreviations in headlines.

CAPTIONS: Continue to use the standard state abbreviations (for those that apply) with communities in photo captions. This is not explicitly stated in the AP Stylebook entry.

MISCELLANEOUS: Use New York state when necessary to distinguish the state from New York City.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 17

Use state of Washington or Washington state when necessary to distinguish the state from the District of Columbia. (Washington State is the name of a university in the state of Washington.)

36. Titles

See also Job Titles. The table below represents key component leader titles within DHS.

Differences among components are noteworthy and included for consistent representation throughout DHS.

Component Key Title U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner / Deputy Commissioner U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary / Deputy Secretary U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement

Director / Deputy Director

Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator / Deputy Administrator Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers Director / Deputy Director Transportation Security Administration Administrator / Deputy Administrator U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Director / Deputy Director U.S. Coast Guard Commandant / Vice Commandant U.S. Secret Service Director / Deputy Director Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency

Director / Deputy Director

37. Web links

Avoid using URLs as link text or the phrase click here. Instead choose meaningful words or phrases for links. Readers should inherently understand the link’s destination. Try to match link text with the title of the resulting page.

DHS Style: All Americans can visit Ready.gov and learn more about being prepared for disaster.

DHS Style: New York residents can learn more at the New York City Emergency Management.

Wrong: All Americans can visit Ready.gov.

Wrong: New York residents can learn more at New York Office of Emergency Management.

Link to content, do not republish content. Provide links to content on other websites rather than duplicating content. This is especially true for forms, management directives and policies.

Linking to the official documents will ensure users get the most up-to-date version alleviating the responsibility of publishing revisions.

http://ready.gov/

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 18

DHS links to other federal websites without a disclaimer. However, links to commercial sites should be avoided as this can be construed as an endorsement of the commercial entity represented by that website. Only in rare instances, when these sites provide government information and/or services in a way that is not available on an official government website, should a link be provided with the following disclaimer:

38. Webster’s New World College Dictionary This is AP’s official dictionary for matters its stylebook doesn’t cover. A searchable version is available at https://www.yourdictionary.com/about/websters-new-world-college-dictionary.html.

39. -wide Generally, do not include a hyphen when using this suffix, in accordance with AP style. For example: alliancewide not alliance-wide. However, use a hyphen when combined with a proper noun or an acronym, providing the acronym itself is acceptable. For example, NATO-wide.

The U.S. government neither endorses nor guarantees in any way the external organizations, services, advice, or products included in these website links. Furthermore, the U.S. government neither controls nor guarantees the accuracy, relevance, timeliness or completeness of the information contained in non- government website links.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 19

Quick Tips—Style, Writing and Grammar Tips DHS Style

Don’t CAPITALIZE or underline for emphasis. Use bold or italics.

American vs. British English: gray (A) vs. grey (B); traveled (A) vs. travelled (B); forward (A)

vs. forwards (B). DHS uses American spelling and usage.

Punctuating bullets: Use semicolons for ending punctuation if they are fragments. If all are complete sentences, then end each sentence with a period. Above all, be consistent.

Use a single space after a period at the end of a sentence.

Don’t link click here or here. Link to the subject: See the full report; Register now.

Writing Title case versus sentence case capitalization: Be consistent within a document.

Spell out (or define or link to a full spelling) acronyms the first time used and repeatedly in separate sections of a long document.

Avoid overuse of due to, try because, as a result of, or following.

Use since with time (Since 2005, infrastructure protection has improved.) and because when you want to show cause (Because it was raining, we got wet.).

Use simple words: additionally → also; utilize → use; in order to → to; numerous → many.

Don’t begin a sentence with a numeral or a year. Incorrect: 2019 stocks are increasing.

Correct: Stocks in 2019 are increasing. Also correct: The year 2019 shows increasing stocks.

Grammar Which or that? Which nearly always has a comma before it. If you can use that, use that.

These two words are not interchangeable. Which is not a more formal word for that.

Make bullets consistent: start with verb, verb, verb; noun, noun, noun; adjective, adjective, adjective.

A person is a who, and a thing is a that. Correct: He is the person who said yes. Incorrect: He is the person that said yes.

Use a hyphen (-) to mean through or to: the temperature was 70-80 degrees. Use the word minus in an arithmetic phrase. Correct: Net imports = imports minus exports.

Incorrect: Net imports = imports-exports.

An en-dash (--) is the length of two hyphens. It’s used to show a break in thought and is almost always used in pairs. Correct: My sister Amy-- who is two years younger than I am-- graduated from college before I did.

Hyphens with adjectives: short-term forecast, end-use technology. No hyphens with nouns:

in the short term, three end uses.

i.e. and e.g. must be followed by a comma. It is better to spell out i.e. → in other words and e.g. → for example.

Couple requires an of, unless it is used in place of a pronoun: “The couple honeymooned in Tahiti.” However, “A couple of the bananas are becoming very ripe.”

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 19

Chapter 2: Editorial Voice and Words and Phrases to Avoid

The written word speaks to readers; it has a voice. Throughout DHS, it is important that our writing voice is professional, clear and concise. This section covers some of the ways to create that voice.

1. Use an inverted pyramid format

Put the main message first so readers can quickly get the most important information and then decide if they want to read more.

Organize content so the information appears in order of importance from the highest level to the supporting details.

2. Choosing active or passive voice

Use the active voice most of the time. The active voice allows readers to scan and comprehend information quickly. Writing in the active voice is generally more concise and uses fewer words than passive-voice constructions.

In active-voice sentences, the subject is doing the action of the verb. In passive-voice sentences, the object is doing the action of the verb.

Passive voice: New regulations were proposed.

Active voice: The agency proposed new regulations.

Passive voice: It is projected that hurricane activity will increase.

Active voice: National Weather Service projects hurricane activity will increase.

Use the passive voice sparingly. The passive voice can be used occasionally:

To emphasize the object of the action, not the doer. In fact, when the subject of the sentence is unimportant or unknown, it may be left out entirely in a passive-voice construction.

Common sense security measures were issued in 2019.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 20

3. Words and phrases to avoid Use simple and specific words—not bureaucratic or clichéd expressions—unless statistical or scientific precision is required.

Bureaucratic or clichéd Simple and specific accordingly so afford an opportunity allow, let a great number of many a number of many, several, a few additionally also, in addition approximately about as to whether whether at the present time; at this point in time now at the time that when burgeoning growing, increasing by means of with, in, by capability ability, can close proximity nearby, near come to an agreement on agree completely destroyed is redundant destroyed commence start, begin consequently so currently now demonstrate a preference for prefer due to the fact that because during the course of during endeavor to try to equally as equally equivalent equal facilitate help finalize finish

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 21 for the most part mostly for the purpose of for, to furthermore also, in addition give approval for approve identical same impacted by affected by in accordance with by, following, under including, but not limited to including initial first in order to to in order to eliminate to eliminate in spite of the fact that although in the event that if in the near future soon in the vicinity of near in violation of violates is able to can it is felt that (omit) kind of rather like such as limited number few magnitude size majority of most make a choice choose make a decision decide no later than by not strong weak not well suited unfit, poorly suited numerous many of the opinion that think on a monthly basis monthly on or before December 2 by December 2 on the basis of based on on the part of by optimum best presents a summary of summarizes prior to before regarding about, of, on retain keep

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 22 subsequent next terminate end, stop the question as to whether whether therefore so the reason why is that because the table is a list of the table shows to perform an analysis to analyze since the time when since sufficient enough until such time as until used for fuel purposes used for fuel utilize use whether or not whether with regard to about with the exception of except would appear that appears

4. Using parallel structure

Use the same grammatical structure to present two or more ideas of equal value in a sentence. Present the same type of information in a similar format to make the information easier to read. Use parallel structure for items in a numbered or bulleted list.

Every bullet must start with the same kind of word (noun, verb, adjective, etc.), and all should be either phrases or complete sentences.

Parallel structure: The project director is a strong leader, a skillful politician and an effective manager.

Not parallel structure: The project director is a strong leader, a skillful politician, and he manages effectively.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 23

5. Maintain consistent verb tenses Maintain consistent verb tenses to clearly establish the time frame of the action.

Using the present tense consistently conveys that the action (control measures) is happening in the same time frame as hazard potential and consequence severity and controls the risk of injury of loss to people.

The shift in verb tense from past (reduced) to present (is controlled) is confusing to the reader. It implies that control measures were applied in the past and that risk is controlled only now (present tense).

Do not change verb tenses unless you want to indicate a clear shift in time.

The first sentence uses the past tense (were adopted) to indicate action that happened in the past. The second sentence uses the future tense (will be reviewed) to indicate future action.

6. Using a consistent point of view

Use one of three different points of view: first person (I), second person (You), or third person (He, She, They). Each point of view expresses a different relationship to the reader.

Generally, third person is most appropriate for DHS writing.

Do not shift point of view within a unit of content (such as a web page or report). The point of view that you choose will depend on your audience and the product you are writing.

Consistent verb tense:

Control measures reduce the chance someone is injured by a particular hazard. As the hazard potential and consequence severity increase, risk of injury is controlled.

Inconsistent verb tense:

Control measures reduced the chance someone was injured by a particular hazard. As the hazard potential and consequence severity increase, risk of injury is controlled.

Appropriate shift in verb tense:

The regulations were adopted in 2000. The regulations will be reviewed in 2010.

Three points of view for writing First Person is when the person or object is speaking: I/We can produce a report on the topic.

Second Person is when the person is spoken to: You can produce a report on the topic.

Third Person is when the object is spoken about: She can produce a report on the topic.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 24

7. Emphasizing content DHS prefers bold text for emphasis. Italics can be used to emphasize a word or phrase, rarely a whole sentence or paragraph. If used too frequently, italics or bolding for emphasis lose their power.

Never underline for emphasis. Underlining is for links only, although most links are now shown in blue type.

Never use capital letters for emphasis.

8. Using Italics Use italics to set off a non-English word or phrase that might be unfamiliar to the reader.

If the foreign phrase is used frequently in the document, use italics only for the first use.

If the phrase is used only rarely in the document, use italics for each use.

Use italics to call attention to specific words or phrases.

Do not use italics if the foreign phrase is commonly used in English. (If the word is in Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary , you do not normally use italics.)

Correct emphasis: Your comments must be sent by mail—not email.

Incorrect emphasis: Your comment must be sent by MAIL—NOT EMAIL.

Incorrect emphasis: Your comments must be sent by mail—not email.

A laissez-faire approach to the market can have serious repercussions.

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 25

Chapter 3: Advice for Good Writing “Clarity does not come from simple ideas, but from presenting ideas in the simplest form possible.”

OECD Style Guide, Second Edition, 2007

DHS style includes advice from several different style guides that disagree on some points. The Government Printing Office style is sometimes too formal. AP Style is the standard within the news media. The Chicago Manual of Style, as well as The Elements of Style, provide suggestions for clarity that DHS style incorporates, but not in all cases. Remember, style is a preference; it is not right or wrong (unlike grammar, which does have rules).

The DHS Writing Style Guide reflects what works best for DHS.

1. General style Use short sentences and short paragraphs. They are easier to read, especially online.

Even if a long paragraph is all one thought or topic, consider breaking it into two smaller sections, or use bullets if there are related points in the paragraph.

Begin with the fact or main point. Don’t start with attribution or history. Avoid using too many introductory clauses.

Use bold text rather than italics or underline for emphasis.

Use the percent sign (%) rather than percent in headlines or content .

Avoid using stacked nouns. Adding too many qualifying words before the noun requires the reader to deconstruct the meaning.

Those who learned to type on a typewriter might recall that two spaces were necessary after a period to appropriately establish a visual break. With computers and printers, this is no longer necessary. Using one space is accepted by most style guides and preferred by news outlets. As for the DHS Style, be consistent within a document.

Preferred: Hurricane activity increased during the last five years of the decade.

Awkward: During the last five years of the decade, hurricane activity increased.

Stacked noun: Annual state DHS protection grants totals Unstacked noun: Annual totals for DHS protection grants by state

I like chocolate. You like fruit.

I like chocolate. You like fruit.

Traditional: two spaces Modern: one space

U.S. Department of Homeland Security | DHS Writing Style Guide 26

2. Avoid run-on sentences A run-on sentence isn’t just a long sentence (a common misconception); it is two sentences squished together without proper punctuation.

3. Avoid excessive use of due to; because is better The use of due to is rampant in DHS writing. Grammar advice says that if you are having trouble figuring out whether to use due to or because, because is almost always the better choice.

4. Use parallel writing styles Bullets should begin with the same part of speech (noun, verb, adjective, etc.). Sentences should be parallel.

5. Do not split infinitives An infinitive consists of to plus a verb: to think, to breathe, to dance. When words appear between its two parts, an infinitive is split.

Incorrect: The candidate decided to formally launch his campaign.

6. First, second, third Use first, second, third for connected points in text, not firstly, secondly, thirdly. See bullets in DHS Supplement to AP Stylebook in Chapter 1. If you have more than three points, consider listing numbered items or using bullets. Saying ‘seventh’ is cumbersome and confusing.

7. Ending a sentence with a preposition is OK Sometimes it is relatively easy to rewrite the sentence so it doesn’t end in a preposition and sounds fine, but don’t…