Below is an email received from my friend Candace Lightner, founder of Mothers Against Drunk Driving, and a national traffic safety advocate. She has been a leader in this very worthwhile movement to get journalists and writers to make a simple but profound cultural change in how we as a society talk about automobile crashes. Candace’s email below.
Hi everyone,
This is a battle we can win!
Do you want to see the media change accident to crash or crime when it comes to reporting on a highway safety incident? Now is your chance. This is a good opportunity to reach out to AP suggest that they improve their guidance to reporters on proper use of the word accident. They have opened a suggestion process for updating the 2016 Stylebook. http://www.apstylebook.com/?do=suggestions
Please suggest that they make a strong statement to journalists about the proper use of the word accident?. They should re-iterate their statement that use of the word accident should be avoided as it might suggest a conclusion. It is important that reporters do not make assumptions about the cause, intent, blame, or criminal nature of a crash. Accident implies knowledge of these events.
The AP Stylebook is a writing style guide for journalists. It is published and updated annually to reflect changes in writing style and new guidelines. It is THE definitive reference for writers, editors, students and professionals. It is also the definitive resource for journalists. It provides fundamental guidelines for spelling, language, punctuation, usage and journalistic style. For those of us who are survivors of impaired driving crimes and distracted driving crashes (yes, they should be a crime, but they aren’t at this time) this would be a great time to let AP know how demeaning that term is to us and how it victimizes us all over again. You need to do this by 10/31.
Tweet and FB this message and send to others. Thank you for caring.
Candace Lightner,
President
www.wesavelives.org
http://twitter.com/voice4safety
http://facebook.com/wesavelives
Founder, Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD)
703-296-4708 cell
http://www.facebook.com/CandaceLightner
http://www.linkedin.com/in/CandaceLightnerPlease don’t drive drunk, drugged or distracted!
