AP Style Guide Reminds Reporters to Avoid Using ‘Assault Weapon,’ Calling Term ‘Highly Politicized’

In a Wednesday tweet, the Associated Press Stylebook reiterated guidance advising journalists to refrain from using the terms “assault weapon” and “assault rifle,” which they call “highly politicized.”

“The preferred term for a rifle that fires one bullet each time the trigger is pulled, and automatically reloads for a  subsequent shot, is a semi-automatic rifle. An automatic rifle continuously fires rounds if the trigger is depressed and until its ammunition is exhausted,” reads a July 2022 style tip, recommending their usage over more general references to “assault” weaponry.

According to the Stylebook, which is adhered to by newsrooms across the country, the “assault” label “convey[s] little meaning about the actual functions of the weapon.”  While the Stylebook change was first made in 2020, conservatives have long derided the modifier as misleading and imprecise.

Stephen Gutowski, founder of The Reload, an outlet dedicated to coverage of firearms policy, reacted on Twitter by expressing his agreement with the guidance, calling it “very good.”

President Joe Biden and members of his party in Congress have called for the reinstatement of an “assault weapons ban,” referring to a provision included in the 1994 Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act.

In that bill, “assault weapons” were defined as semi-automatic rifles with two or more features from a list that included bayonet mounts, grenade launchers, and pistol grips. Certain specific models, including Colt AR-15s, were also not allowed to be manufactured for civilian use under the ban, although weapons already lawfully possessed before its passage were grandfathered in.

Although studies have come to varying conclusions on the efficacy of the ban, with most calling its effects negligible, it has been observed that a vast majority of crimes committed with firearms are perpetrated using firearms not defined as “assault weapons” by the 1994 bill.

The AP’s guidance, highlighted in a tweet on Wednesday, marked a rare ruling that pleased political conservatives. Previous guidance on gender issues and urban violence had been criticized for accepting progressive premises.