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Digital Standards

Common usage

Acronyms and abbreviations

General usage

  • Only use acronyms without any explanation if they are commonly used within your audience (e.g., ZIP code, HTML, PDF, and URL).

  • Always capitalize acronyms.

    • ZIP is an acronym for Zone Improvement Plan.

  • Don’t use an apostrophe to form the plural of an acronym.

    • Did you receive the PDFs?

  • Don’t use acronyms too often. Only include acronyms when they make your writing easier to read.

First references

  • The first time you refer to an organization or project that uses an acronym, write out the full name and follow with the abbreviation in parentheses.

    • The General Services Administration (GSA) oversees the business of the U.S. federal government.

  • Some names are more recognizable when they’re abbreviated, as with IBM and FBI. In these instances, the acronym is always acceptable, and you don’t need to spell out the full name at first use.

    • The department coordinated with the FBI.

Later references

  • If possible, use a shortened version of the name in your second reference.

  • Readers can understand a shortened name without having to think about the first reference. This also helps prevent confusion between identical or similar acronyms.

    • Parks & Rec instead of PPR
    • For the Department of Commerce, use Commerce instead of DOC
    • For the Department of Corrections, use Corrections instead of DOC

Active vs. passive voice

See active and passive voice in our writing style guide.

Addresses

  • Spell out the entire street name, but abbreviate the type of street (St., Rd., Blvd., etc).
    • 1401 John F. Kennedy Blvd.

Citizen

Some people living within the city are not citizens. We prefer to use residents or individuals.

Dates

  • Use numbers for dates and years.

  • Don’t use st, nd, rd, or th after a number.

  • When you use months with a date, only abbreviate the following months: Jan., Feb., Aug., Sept., Oct., Nov., and Dec.

    • The Phillies’ opening day is April 8.
    • The first day of school will be Wednesday, Sept. 9 this year.

  • You don’t need to use a comma if only a year and month are given.

    • I began my job in December 2017.

  • You do need a comma when date, month, and year are given.

    • Philadelphia was founded on Oct. 27, 1682.

  • Capitalize days of the week. Only abbreviate when space is limited.

    • Mayor Kenney will be speaking at the event on Thursday.
    • M, Tu, F 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.; W, Th, Sa, Sun 7:30 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Emigrate from/immigrate to

  • Emigrate means to leave one country or region to settle in another.

    • In 1900, my grandfather emigrated from Russia.

  • Immigrate means to enter another country and reside there.

    • Many people immigrate to the United States to find work.

Figurative language

See figurative language in our writing style guide.

Inclusive language

See inclusive language in our writing style guide.

Historic/historical

  • In general usage, historic refers to what is important in history.

    • A historic summit meeting between the prime ministers

  • Historical applies more broadly to whatever existed in the past, whether it was important or not.

    • The City eliminated the Department of Horse and Buggies, a historical department, in 1909.

Login/log in

  • One word when used as a noun or adjective.

    • What’s your login name?

  • Two words when used as a verb.

    • Hurry up and log in!

Measurements

  • Use imperial units of measure (e.g., foot, mile, gallon, and pound).

    • 23 ft. high
    • 6 ft. 2 in.

  • Spell out units of measure, except after numbers, where you can use abbreviations (e.g., ft., lb., mpg).

    • 144 sq. ft.
    • 12 ft. x 12 ft.
    • The sustainability program will reduce the total number of gallons consumed.
    • price per pound

  • Avoid using measurement symbols (e.g., # for pound), including in tables.

    • 20 pounds

Names

  • Use the City government directory to find the official name of an office, department, or commission. Use that name consistently.

    • Department of Revenue, not Revenue Department

  • After the first reference on a page, use a shortened name.

    • File your City taxes with the Department of Revenue. If you have trouble paying your taxes, Revenue has a variety of assistance programs.

  • For people, on initial mention, use First Name Last Name. In later mentions, use only the last name. If two individuals in a story have the same last name, use First Name Last Name in every instance.

    • John Jones said that working in city government is the most fulfilling job he’s ever had. Jones joined his department in 1994.
    • John Jones and Casey Jones say their work in city government is essential. John Jones joined his department in 1994. Casey Jones began her work with the City in 2001.

Numbers

Spell out a number when it:

  • Is a number between one and nine.

    • The office requested eight volleyballs.

  • Occurs at the start of a sentence.

    • Twenty minutes later, the last cyclist crossed the finish line.

  • Is a fraction used as an estimate.

    • one-half, two-thirds, three-quarters

Use digits instead of spelling out a number when it:

  • Is 10 or higher.

    • The Fire Department is hiring 12 new employees.

  • Includes a decimal point.

    • At that time, the average age for marriage was just 18.7 years old.

  • Is part of a percentage.

    • 19% of registered voters

  • Is part of a range of numbers.

    • the coveted 18–34 demographic; working 9 to 5

Ages

  • Always use digits to express ages.
    • 5 years old

Decimal points

  • Use a leading zero (0.05, not .05) for numbers between minus one and plus one. Use a consistent number of decimal places within a document.

Fractions

  • Spell out and hyphenate all numbers less than one.

    • one-half, two-thirds

  • Separate fractions from a preceding whole number with a space.

    • 5 ½

Measurement

  • Always use numerals in measurements.
    • 5 feet by 20 feet

Money

  • Use the dollar sign ($) for amounts given in United States Dollars (USD).

    • Project estimates are expected to exceed $289.5 million after the storm damage is assessed.

  • For fractional amounts under $1.00 that do not occur in a chart or list, use digits for the number and spell out the word “cents.”

    • In 2014, the cost of producing a penny dropped to 1.7 cents, down from 2.4 cents in 2011.

Percentages

  • Use digits and a percentage sign (%) with no space between them.
    • The study showed a 5% decrease in obesity rates among students aged 5 to 18.
    • Late fee: 5% of the total due, plus an additional 0.5% for every month the bill is not paid.

Phone and fax numbers

  • Use parentheses and a space to separate the area code from the rest of a phone or fax number. Use a hyphen (-) between the third and fourth digits that follow the area code, but no spaces.
    • Call (215) 686-0306 to find out if the building where you live is being managed by a court-appointed receiver.
    • You can pay delinquent property taxes with a credit card by calling (877) 309-3710.

Ranges

  • Use “to” when constructing number ranges within sentences.

    • The work should take 20 to 30 days.

  • An en dash may be used in place of “to” outside of sentences to save space.

    • Hours 5–8 p.m.

Years

  • Do not use an apostrophe when pluralizing years.
    • 1900s

See the “numerals” entry in AP Stylebook for complete guidance.

Online/offline

  • Write both online and offline as single words without hyphens.

Onsite/offsite

  • Write both onsite and offsite as single words without hyphens.

Passive voice

See active and passive voice in our writing style guide.

Plain language

See plain language in our writing style guide.

Redundant phrases

See redundant phrases in our writing style guide.

Set up/setup

  • Set up is a verb that suggests the act of putting something together.

    • He set up the meeting room.

  • Setup is the noun that represents the result or arrangement of what you have put together.

    • We all agreed the new setup was an improvement.

State name abbreviations

  • In most cases, write out state names. Use AP Stylebook abbreviations when referring to a state in a dateline, list, captions, tables, or political party affiliation. Set the state name off on both sides with a comma if in the middle of a sentence. Never use postal abbreviations except when writing out a postal address.
    • Our headquarters are in Philadelphia, Pa., but we serve the world.

The

  • Do not capitalize as part of a proper noun or title unless “the” is part of the trademarked or copyrighted name.
    • New York City is also called the Big Apple.
    • An article in The New York Times quoted the mayor.
    • Listed as one of the Fortune 500, Acme was a great place to work.

Third-party

  • Hyphenate the adjective, but never the noun.

Time-date-place

  • Use a time-date-place structure for event information in text. The day of the week is optional. If the day is included, it should be spelled out.
    • The press conference will be held at 2 p.m., Jan. 25 at the Municipal Services Building.
    • The press conference will be held at 2 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 25 at the Municipal Services Building.

Times

  • Use numbers to state exact times.

  • Use a.m. and p.m. for morning and afternoon.

    • We pick up the mail at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m.

  • Use noon and midnight to avoid confusion about 12 a.m. and 12 p.m.

    • Lunch is at noon.
    • Parking is legal until midnight.

  • Use a colon to separate hours and minutes, but don’t use a colon for something that occurs on the hour.

    • Parking rules are in effect from 6:30 p.m. to 10 p.m.

Titles, job

  • Capitalize job titles when they come before the person’s name.

    • Senior Vice President of Marketing, Jim Smith, is a member.

  • Do not capitalize job titles when they follow the person’s name in a sentence.

    • Jane Doe, vice president of operations, has been with Acme for 10 years.

See also, Capitalization.

Titles, media

  • Italicize names of magazines, newspapers, books, newsletters, and movies.

  • Avoid underlining, unless the title is a link.

  • Put names of reports and articles in quotation marks.

United States / U.S.

  • United States is a noun.

    • Clams Casino is the most renowned dish in the United States.

  • U.S. is an adjective.

    • The company’s U.S. client base is extensive.

User

  • In most cases, avoid the word user. Words like resident or individual are often more appropriate.
    • Over 14,000 residents have signed up for the service.
    • The Mayor estimates that some 36,000 individuals will be involved.
    • The department’s web application has 5,000 users.

Year and a half/year-and-a-half

  • Hyphenate only as an adjective.
    • A year-and-a-half assignment
    • A year and a half on the management team

ZIP code

  • Capitalize ZIP. ZIP is an acronym for “Zone Improvement Plan.”
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