The CIA has an internal writing style guide! Choice bits include:
- regime: has a disparaging connotation and should not be used when referring to democratically elected governments or, generally, to governments friendly to the United States.
- tortuous (adj, twisting, devious, highly complex), torturous (adj, causing torture, cruelly painful)
- number of: a phrase that is too imprecise in some contexts. A number of troops were killed. (If you do not know how many, say an unknown number.)
- casualties: include persons injured, captured, or missing in action as well as those killed in battle. In formulating casualty statistics, be sure to write “killed or wounded,” not “killed and wounded.” (See injuries, casualties.)
- nonconventional, unconventional: Nonconventional refers to high-tech weaponry short of nuclear explosives. Fuel-air bombs are effective nonconventional weapons. Unconventional means not bound by convention.Shirley Chisholm was an unconventional woman.
- Free World: is at best an imprecise designation. Use only in quoted matter.
Full manual here. Full story from Michael Silverburg at Quartz.
Something I’ve noticed in my dealings with the US government and foreign service: People are incredibly smart and articulate, but the more senior they are, the more unintelligible they get. I sat through a 30 minute lunch talk recently and I swear he could have been just linking random words together. Diplomacy.
23 Responses
HT @cblatts on the CIA writing style guide – I never new difference between tortuous & torturous. http://t.co/3XwfZYh5mE
Strunk and White were CIA sources: The CIA has an internal writing style guide! Choice bits include: regime: h… http://t.co/ff4QdVWcyQ
RT @robcrilly: this is a style guide I’d love to add to my collection http://t.co/CXNXdxJCEp
RT @robcrilly: this is a style guide I’d love to add to my collection http://t.co/CXNXdxJCEp
this is a style guide I’d love to add to my collection http://t.co/CXNXdxJCEp
The CIA has a writing style guide: “Strunk and White were CIA sources” #editing http://t.co/1zzbs0KwnZ
I notice this is an internal writing style guide. What is their external writing style guide. In particular what style is adopted by the CIA when reporting the expulsion of a CIA spy by one of the major allies of the USA. Do they prepare the speech for Obama or is that done by the White House Press with their own writing style. Maybe some examples could be suggested by readers. Next thing they’ll be tapping Angie’s phone.
RT @cblatts: The CIA has a style guide! http://t.co/Z90YmZ4FEw
HT @cblatts: CIA style guide: “regime” has a “disparaging connotation.” I need to edit all my scholarly papers now http://t.co/RdG2xI8n2Z
RT @cblatts: How to write furtively. http://t.co/o2fMRbDwSf
RT @TimHarford: Strunk and White were CIA sources… but is the secret of diplomacy being unintelligible? http://t.co/wVHISFAuIa
Strunk and White were CIA sources… but is the secret of diplomacy being unintelligible? http://t.co/wVHISFAuIa
RT @cblatts: How to write furtively. http://t.co/o2fMRbDwSf
Fantastic. “@cblatts: How to write furtively. http://t.co/51ugJwbhA9“
RT @cblatts: How to write furtively. http://t.co/o2fMRbDwSf
RT @cblatts: How to write furtively. http://t.co/o2fMRbDwSf
How to write furtively. http://t.co/o2fMRbDwSf
RT @stepdown: @emmatucker @nash_aaron RT @cblatts The CIA has a style guide! http://t.co/ernCXEr5l6
@emmatucker @nash_aaron RT @cblatts The CIA has a style guide! http://t.co/ernCXEr5l6
.@cblatts Very cool. Twitter is not in it, but the definition of smartphone (p. 171).
http://t.co/07ipWMyKTN
The CIA has a style guide! http://t.co/Z90YmZ4FEw
RT @johnedwinmason: Not really. But click anyway. It’s good. >> RT @cblatts: Strunk and White were CIA sources http://t.co/sg3lfsoQ7M
Not really. But click anyway. It’s good. >> RT @cblatts: Strunk and White were CIA sources http://t.co/sg3lfsoQ7M