From the World of Conscious Language
Sam Bankman-Fried Is Not a Child | Molly White
“It’s jarring to read a story about a neighbor calling the police on a nine-year-old Black girl spraying for invasive lanternflies, describing the girl to a dispatcher as a ‘little Black woman walking, spraying stuff’, and then switch over to another tab with a story on the 30-year old ‘crypto kid’ who might’ve just made an oopsie with billions of dollars of customer funds.”
Mum Watched Me Correct My Husband, Then Sagely Warned Me: “Don’t Become the Expert in the Baby” | The Guardian
“Don’t correct your partner on how they change the baby or feed the baby, or whatever with the baby, because…they will lose confidence and you both will become convinced that your way is the correct way. Then you will go back to work and still be the expert…the one who does everything for them, knows what foods they should eat, what the routines are, how everything should be done.”
Church of England to Explore Gender-Neutral Terms for God—Women Clergy’s Suggestions for Replacing “Our Father” | The Conversation
“As feminist theologian Mary Daly wrote: ‘If God is male, the male is god’. In other words, talking about the Christian God in exclusively masculine terms privileges men in society and underpins male dominance.”
New “Latino” and “Middle Eastern or North African” Checkboxes Proposed for U.S. Forms | NPR
“While the U.S. government currently categorizes people with origins in Lebanon, Iran, Egypt and other countries in the MENA region as white, many people of MENA descent do not identify as white people.”
The US Is Becoming More Multiracial. Here’s What That Means for Our Language. | Quibbles & Bits
“BuzzFeed News defaults to using biracial or multiracial instead of mixed if we cannot ask a source which they prefer.”
Images That Don’t Need Alternative Text Still Need ALT Attributes | Bureau of Internet Accessibility
“If you’re using elements purely for decoration, you may actually hurt accessibility by writing an alt tag—but you still need to include an empty (or null) alt tag.”
When Did “Woke” Lose Its Meaning & How Do We Get It Back? | Refinery29
“Next time someone uses ‘woke’ in a derogatory manner…ask them what they really mean by that term. Make them say the quiet part out loud. Because it might be harder to say ‘I hate Black people’ than ‘that’s too woke.’”
Rejecting the “Free Speech” Frame | Nieman Lab
“Journalists need to reject this ‘free speech’ framing and contextualize what’s actually being talked about, why it is not a First Amendment violation, and what type of speech the right is defending.”
Journalist and Editor Calls for Action to Stop Ableist Reporting in the UK Media | Journalism.co.uk
“Ableist coverage falls under discriminatory content, and is therefore in breach of both IPSO’s Editors’ code and the Independent Monitor for the Press’ (IMPRESS) Standards, both independent UK media regulators.”
Don’t Say “Prove”: How to Report on the Conclusiveness of Research Findings | The Journalist’s Resource
“Even when scientists have lots of very strong evidence, they rarely claim to have found proof because proof is absolute. To prove something means there is no chance another explanation exists.”
NABJ Offers Guidance on Coverage of the Tyre Nichols Murder Footage | National Association of Black Journalists
“News executives and managers must ensure that the reporting produced under their leadership follows the pillars of journalism and unapologetically tells Tyre’s story through a careful lens of the Black community.”
AAJA’s Guidance on Covering Violence in Asian American Communities, Following Multiple Mass Shootings in California | Asian American Journalists Association
“Rather than using euphemisms like ‘anti-Asian sentiment’ or ‘anti-Asian hate,’ assess whether it is more accurate to use terms like ‘anti-Asian racism,’ ‘anti-Asian bias,’ ‘anti-Asian rhetoric,’ or ‘anti-Asian violence.’”
Do You Use These Words When You Apologize? It’s Time to Stop, Researchers Say | NPR
“When you apologize, you have to keep the other person’s feelings at top of mind.”—Marjorie Ingall, coauthor, Sorry, Sorry, Sorry: The Case for Good Apologies
CSG in the News
A Brief Guide to Inclusive Writing Resources | Government of Canada
“The Conscious Style Guide website is a compendium of developments in the field of inclusive language. It was founded by Karen Yin, who launched both the website and The Conscious Language Newsletter in 2015. Yin encourages us to think critically about using language in order to avoid unconscious bias.”
Q&A: Karen Yin: Using “Conscious Language” to Improve Accuracy and Support Equity | The Objective
“When people push back against something, it’s often because there’s too much distance between how they think and how I think. Part of conscious language…is being able to present things in a way that is relevant to people, and make sense in their language.”
It’s Time to Retire the Term “Blind” Review | American Society of Plant Biologists
“We are changing our language around peer review to use the phrase ‘anonymous’ review rather than ‘blind’ review.”
Sensitivity Reading: Censorship or a Path to Better Literature? | Utopia.org
“Even with the best of intentions, an author may make mistakes without realizing it, which is where a sensitivity reader can assist.”
From the Archives
On Calling Little Girls "Princess" | By Joanna Eng, Conscious Style Guide
“Can this gendered term of endearment be reclaimed as empowering?”
In Case You Missed It
The Conscious Language Newsletter: January 2023
Including fat people in DEI goals, improving Muslim representation, and avoiding both-sidesing climate coverage.
 | Play, Work, and Sleep in This Soft T-ShirtMake peace with words! This super soft T-shirt is hand-printed to order in your choice of shirt and ink colors as well as style (fitted or straight-cut). Every purchase supports two woman- and POC-owned businesses. Why make peace? Read the article by CSG founder Karen Yin. |
 | Shop for Diverse Picture BooksOn DiversePictureBooks.com (our Bookshop.org storefront), find exceptional picture books that spread understanding, compassion, and joy through diverse representation. We earn a commission on all orders. |
 | Ask, Share, and Learn in Our Facebook GroupAre you on Facebook? Join our closed Conscious Language + Design Facebook Group to learn, share, and chat with others who are curious or serious about conscious language. |
 | Submit Job Listings for FreeCSG's Editors of Color Database helps recruiters connect with editors, proofreaders, and sensitivity readers of color in the U.S. and Canada. On the website, you can submit job listings for distribution to our private network of pros and explore the 100+ resources in Diverse Databases, which highlights underrepresented groups. Diversify your sources now! |
 | Get More Tips on InstagramFollow @consciousstyleguide on Instagram for examples of how context can support sensitive content, with a focus on children's books, including young adult. |
