Bonk, cop, spokesperson and press conference: BBC style guide ‘bans’ words
The latest editorial style guide for the BBC suggests words which its journalists should not use, including the ‘ugly’ word spokesperson, with swearwords ‘not integral to the story’ also frowned upon.
The guide suggests: "You may include some swear words, if you think their omission seriously undermines the impact of the story - but this is subject to the approval of a senior editor.
"Swear words should be clearly signposted, either by saying early in the story that strong language is involved or by having a standalone warning at the top. There is no ‘Top 10’ list of swear words, but do bear in mind that racial and religious terms may be considered very offensive. If in doubt - leave it out.”
BBC employees were also informed that they cannot make a judgement on if news is good or bad: it must be reported plainly so that the readers can decide, as part of the BBC’s impartial statute.
The style guide suggests that ‘journalese’, such as bonk, cop and ongoing should not be used, as well as press conference, which has been deemed as ‘too narrow a term’ and replaced with news conference.