The San Francisco Chronicle will no longer refer to the Washington Redskins by their nickname in print. The decision has not been publicly announced, but Politico reports the staff was informed of the change last week.

“Words are powerful, and so is how we choose to use them,” the Chronicle’s managing editor said in an e-mail to Politico. “Our long-standing policy is to not use racial slurs — and make no mistake, ‘redskin’ is a slur — except in cases where it would be confusing to the reader to write around it. For example, we will use the team name when referring to the controversy surrounding its use.”

The Chronicle’s decision comes about a month before the San Francisco 49ers are set to play Washington on November 25. Another major NFL city newspaper, the Kansas City Star, announced last year that it would also refrain from using the name.

Via Weasel Zippers.