Regardless of AP’s stylistic decision, The Marlin Chronicle uses, and will continue to use its style guide, which includes the mentioned changes.
Isaac Fick|Marlin Chronicle
An executive order titled, “Restoring names that honor American Greatness,” signed on Jan. 20 said, “within 30 days of the date of this order, the Secretary of the Interior shall … take all appropriate actions to rename as the ‘Gulf of America’ … the area formerly named as the Gulf of Mexico.”
The executive order explained its reasoning, being “in recognition of this flourishing economic resource and its critical importance to our Nation’s economy and its people.”
The Associated Press (AP) decided to maintain its stylistic guidelines in reference to the body of water, known internationally as the Gulf of Mexico.
According to AP’s announcement, the reasoning for this decision is the “order only carries authority within the United States. Mexico, as well as other countries and international bodies, do not have to recognize the name change.”
OVAL OFFICE
On Feb. 11, an AP reporter was barred from an Oval Office event, following the demand for AP to adhere to the Gulf’s name change, according to an AP article: “Later, a second AP reporter was barred from a late-evening event in the White House’s Diplomatic Reception Room.” The article said the ban “could have constitutional free-speech implications.”
In another Jan. 20 executive order, titled “Restoring Freedom of Speech and Ending Federal Censorship,” it was decreed that “The First Amendment enshrines the right of the American people to speak freely in the public square without Government interference.”
The order said the previous administration, “Under the guise of combatting ‘misinformation,’ ‘disinformation,’ and ‘malinformation,’ the Federal Government infringed on the constitutionally protected speech rights … in a manner that advanced the Government’s preferred narrative about significant matters of public debate.
“Government censorship of speech is intolerable in a free society,” the order said.
The previous AP article referred to a statement from Julie Pace, AP’s senior vice president and executive editor. “Limiting our access to the Oval Office based on the content of AP’s speech not only severely impedes the public’s access to independent news,” she said. “It plainly violates the First Amendment.”
“Nobody has the right to go into the Oval Office and ask the president of the United States questions,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a White House press conference on Feb. 12. “That is an invitation that is given. We reserve the right to decide who gets to go into the Oval Office.”
Google Maps changed the Gulf’s name when viewed in America.
Google|Courtesy
A reporter asked if this response is retaliatory to reporters who do not use the government’s preferred language.
“If we feel that lies are being pushed by outlets in this room, we are going to hold those lies accountable,” Leavitt said. “It is a fact that the body of water off the coast of Louisiana is called the Gulf of America. And I’m not sure why news outlets don’t want to call it that, but that is what it is.”
“Apple has recognized that. Google has recognized that. Pretty much every other outlet in this room has recognized that body of water as the Gulf of America,” Leavitt said.
“It’s very important to this administration that we get that right,” Leavitt said. “Not just for people here at home, but also for the rest of the world.”
“The White House cannot dictate how news organizations report the news,” the White House Correspondents Agency’s President Eugence Daniels said. “Nor should it penalize working journalists because it is unhappy with their editors’ decision.”
AP reiterated its reasoning in the announcement. “The Gulf of Mexico has carried that name for more than 400 years. The Associated Press will refer to it by its original name while acknowledging the new name Trump has chosen. As a global news agency that disseminates news around the world, the AP must ensure that place names and geography are easily recognizable to all audiences.”
An AP article reported Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo’s response to Google’s adherence to the Gulf name change. She said in a Feb. 13 news conference that Mexico’s government won’t count out filing a lawsuit against Google if it continues this choice.
The article referred to a X post from Google, which said Google has a “long-standing practice of applying name changes when they have been updated in official government sources.”
While the Google change refers to the Gulf as, “Gulf of America” in only the United States, Sheinbaum Pardo said, “the entire Gulf of Mexico cannot be called the Gulf of America.”
MOUNT MCKINLEY
The name change executive order also contained a change regarding North America’s tallest peak, Mount McKinley in Alaska. “Within 30 days of the date of this order, the Secretary of the Interior shall … reinstate the name ‘Mount McKinley,’” formerly known as Denali, however, “The national park area surrounding Mount McKinley shall retain the name Denali National Park and Preserve,” the executive order said.
With the goal of honoring 25th President of the United States William McKinley, the country named the peak Mount McKinley. In 2015, the name was changed to Denali by former President Barack Obama, with the goal of honoring the Alaska Natives and current resident preferences.
“The Associated Press will use the official name change to Mount McKinley. The area lies solely in the United States,” and the “president … has the authority to change federal geographical names within the country,” according to the same AP announcement.
AP BARRED
As a result of the Gulf’s name change disagreement another AP article said that on Feb. 13, “An AP reporter was prevented from entering a news conference where President Donald Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi answered questions.”
The article referred to a statement from Pace. “This is now the third day AP reporters have been barred from covering the president — first as a member of the pool, and now from a formal press conference — an incredible disservice to the billions of people who rely on The Associated Press for nonpartisan news.”
In an article, CBS News paraphrased a Feb. 14 announcement from a top White House official, saying “The White House is barring all [AP] journalists from accessing spaces such as the Oval Office and Air Force One.”
CBS referenced a quote from White House Deputy Chief of Staff Taylor Budowich. She said AP’s decision to retain the name, Gulf of Mexico, “is not just divisive, but it also exposes the Associated Press’ commitment to misinformation.”
Budowich said that while their decision is protected by the First Amendment, “it does not ensure their privilege of unfettered access to limited spaces, like the Oval Office and Air Force One.”
“Going forward,” Budowich said, “that space will now be opened up to the many thousands of reporters who have been barred from covering these intimate areas of the administration.”
LAWSUIT
The AP filed a lawsuit against White House Chief of Staff Susan Wiles, Budowich and Leavitt, according to a Feb. 21 AP article.
Filed on Feb. 21, the lawsuit assigned to the 2017 appointed U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden, claimed that “Because the White House has made those spaces available to other members of the pool, it cannot constitutionally deny the AP’s access without due process of law, and cannot deny access so arbitrarily or for anything other than legitimate, compelling reasons.”
The lawsuit referred to a Feb. 18 email from Wiles to the AP, alleging, “Wiles wrote that the White House was targeting the AP because its Stylebook ‘is used by many as a standard for writing and editing,’ and that it ‘advises journalists, scholars and classrooms around our country.’”
Wiles said “we remain hopeful that the name of the [Gulf] will be appropriately reflected in the Stylebook where American audiences are concerned,” which the lawsuit said implies “that the AP could change its guidance as to American audiences to resolve the issue and restore its access.”
AP’S INFLUENCE
The CBS article said “The AP is a regular representative in the White House press pool,” and “The AP estimates 4 billion people read its news every day, and it has journalists in nearly 100 countries.”
According to the Purdue Online Writing Lab, “Many newspapers, magazines and public relations offices across the United States use AP style.”
“Although some publications such as the New York Times have developed their own style guidelines,” the Writing Lab said, “a basic knowledge of AP style is considered essential to those who want to work in print journalism.”
By Isaac Fick
ihfick@vwu.edu
