(LifeSiteNews) — A recently uncovered change in the Associated Press (AP) Stylebook urges journalists to use the term “anti-abortion centers” instead of “crisis pregnancy centers” when writing about pro-life organizations that offer assistance for women facing unplanned pregnancies.
The guidebook states that “anti-abortion counseling centers, ‘crisis pregnancy centers’ that oppose abortions” and “anti-abortion centers” are all acceptable terms to describe “centers set up to divert or discourage women from having abortions.”
“If using the term anti-abortion center, explain later that these often are known as ‘crisis pregnancy centers’ (with quotation marks) and that their aim is to dissuade people from getting an abortion.”
The guidance also advises journalists to “avoid potentially misleading terms such as pregnancy resource centers or pregnancy counseling centers” because “these terms don’t convey that the centers’ general aim is to prevent abortions.”
The Daily Signal determined that the stylebook was updated between November 20 and 27. The change in guidance is listed at the end of the abortion topical guide on the AP website.
The term “pro-life” is frowned upon by the organization, which suggests journalists “use the modifiers anti-abortion or abortion rights.” It also discourages use of the term “abortionist” because it “connotes a person who performs clandestine abortions.” The stylebook also states that “the verb provide is a good alternative to the verb perform” when referring to medical professionals who commit the murder of the unborn.
The AP recommends describing a developing human fetus as a “baby” or “child” only when a mother is saddened by a miscarriage, but not if a woman chooses abortion. Caving to the LGBT agenda, the organization also includes the terms “pregnant people” and “people seeking abortions” as “acceptable phrasing” for women carrying a developing child. These terms are meant to include “people who have those experiences but do not identify as women, such as some transgender [sic] men and some nonbinary [sic] people.”
The guidebook also lists Planned Parenthood as “one of the nation’s leading reproductive health care providers.”
In December, the AP Stylebook updated its guidance on abortion-related terms to encourage use of the term “abortion later in pregnancy” in place of “late-term abortion.”
According to a June 2022 report from the Charlotte Lozier Institute, pro-life crisis pregnancy centers saved an estimated 828,131 babies between 2016 and 2020. These centers offer a range of assistance to women experiencing unplanned or crisis pregnancies, including ultrasound services, truthful education about abortion, finding employment, and supporting both mothers and babies after birth.
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