# Missing Periods In BBC Stories? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 11, 2009, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-periods-in-bbc-stories/485309 "2009-02-11T02:04:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-periods-in-bbc-stories/485309/1 "2009-02-11T02:04:09Z")
Examples from [here:](http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7882143.stm) > [@](#): > > President Barack Obama welcomed the vote as a good start. It came as the US Treasury Secretary unveiled a bank bail-out plan worth some $1.5 trillion. No periods for abbreviated US? > [@](#): > > Speaking at a public event in Fort Myers, Florida, Mr Obama said the passage of the Senate legislation was “good news” but warned there was still work to do. No period for abbreviated Mr? This is the apparent style of the BBC and is consistent in every article. I’ve never seen, or noticed I guess, this before and wonder why this (incorrect?) style is common. ---
**Author:** ![Ponderoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponderoid/32/19221_2.png) [@Ponderoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponderoid)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-periods-in-bbc-stories/485309/2 "2009-02-11T02:23:18Z")
I’ve acted as a proofreader for a British amateur author and he told me that leaving off periods in abbreviations is standard over there. The article is somewhat lacking, but [wikipedia confirms it](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_and_British_English_differences#Punctuation). \*\*\* Ponder ---
**Author:** ![Alan\_Smithee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/2acd7d/32.png) [@Alan\_Smithee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alan_Smithee)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-periods-in-bbc-stories/485309/3 "2009-02-11T02:24:20Z")
It’s the normal (and correct) style for the UK, followed by all major book publishers, periodicals and schools. The British have been quietly removing periods from most abbreviations for decades now. I believe they may be stockpiling them. For what purpose, I do not know, but our American prodigality with punctuation may soon put us at some unfortunate disadvantage. I suggest cutting periods out of old magazines and newspapers and saving them, just to be safe. I believe the convention is that initialisms (US, EU, NHS) and abbreviations formed from the first and last letters of a word (Mr, Dr) don’t have periods, but abbreviations formed from the first letters of a word (Prof., Rev., Ave.) do. I’m not sure about abbreviations that don’t fit either criterion (Blvd[.], Mrs[.], e[.]g[.]). ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-periods-in-bbc-stories/485309/4 "2009-02-11T03:40:55Z")
Ignorance fought. Cheers ---
**Author:** ![mutantmoose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a87d85/32.png) [@mutantmoose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mutantmoose)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-periods-in-bbc-stories/485309/5 "2009-02-11T04:02:23Z")
> **[Apostrophes abolished by council](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/4388343/Apostrophes-abolished-by-council.html)** > > Apostrophes in street signs have been banned by a council because its staff spend too much time dealing with complaints about grammar. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-periods-in-bbc-stories/485309/6 "2009-02-11T04:27:02Z")
> [@mutantmoose](#): > > [tollbit-host.com](http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/4388343/Apostrophes-abolished-by-council.html) And so generally all confusing punctuation is to be removed from the Queen’s English at some point, I predict. ---
**Author:** ![Alan\_Smithee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/2acd7d/32.png) [@Alan\_Smithee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alan_Smithee)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-periods-in-bbc-stories/485309/7 "2009-02-11T04:48:40Z")
You mean Queens English, surely! Or am I jumping the gun? ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-periods-in-bbc-stories/485309/8 "2009-02-11T04:55:24Z")
> [@Alan\_Smithee](#): > > You mean Queens English, surely! > > Or am I jumping the gun? English. English of the Queen. Is this not then the Queen’s English? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-periods-in-bbc-stories/485309/9 "2009-02-11T05:13:46Z")
Maybe the BBC is pregnant? ---
**Author:** ![Alan\_Smithee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/2acd7d/32.png) [@Alan\_Smithee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alan_Smithee)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-periods-in-bbc-stories/485309/10 "2009-02-11T05:37:46Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > English. English of the Queen. Is this not then the Queen’s English? Um . . . did you READ the link?😕 ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-periods-in-bbc-stories/485309/11 "2009-02-11T06:06:01Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Maybe the BBC is pregnant? I always worry about that with missed periods. ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 6:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-periods-in-bbc-stories/485309/12 "2009-02-11T06:38:45Z")
> [@Alan\_Smithee](#): > > The British have been quietly removing periods from most abbreviations for decades now. Americans too, just not at an equal pace. Things like “U.C.” (University of California) are now “UC.” Washington D.C. is often “DC.” There are two patterns in the States. One pattern is that when an abbreviation of something becomes very commonly used, such as “D.C.”, style guides eventually say, "Okay, you can just write “DC.” The other pattern is when an abbreviation can be pronounced as though it were a word. Nobody writes “N.A.S.A.,” because everyone can pronounce it as “Nasa.” Same with “NAFTA.” ---
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 10:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-periods-in-bbc-stories/485309/13 "2009-02-11T10:25:58Z")
> [@Alan\_Smithee](#): > > I believe the convention is that initialisms (US, EU, NHS) and abbreviations formed from the first and last letters of a word (Mr, Dr) don’t have periods, but abbreviations formed from the first letters of a word (Prof., Rev., Ave.) do. I’m not sure about abbreviations that don’t fit either criterion (Blvd[.], Mrs[.], e[.]g[.]). The period is omitted when it is a contraction in which the last letter is the same as the last letter of the full word, not just when it is exactly the first and last letters of a word. Hence Mrs (Mistress) is a contraction and does not take a period. Aside from that, it would be too confusing to use Mrs. with a period but Mr and Ms without. And for similar reasons of consistency, it is often “Prof” even though it is not a contraction. We don’t really use Blvd in our street names, but it is a contraction and hence I would not expect a period. A search of the BBC site for “Hollywood Blvd” supports that. e.g. has periods. ---
**Author:** ![Mk\_VII](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Mk\_VII](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mk_VII)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 12:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-periods-in-bbc-stories/485309/14 "2009-02-11T12:11:30Z")
I’ve got here a 1942 letter from “Lt.-Colonel H. P. Hunter, C.B.E., D.L.” [letterhead], which to me seems to be a bit over the top in the punctuation department. With so many people adapting their typing style to the internet, I think periods will continue to disappear. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-periods-in-bbc-stories/485309/15 "2009-02-11T12:40:24Z")
> [@Alan\_Smithee](#): > > I believe the convention is that initialisms (US, EU, NHS) and abbreviations formed from the first and last letters of a word (Mr, Dr) don’t have periods, but abbreviations formed from the first letters of a word (Prof., Rev., Ave.) do. I’m not sure about abbreviations that don’t fit either criterion (Blvd[.], Mrs[.], e[.]g[.]). There’s no one single set of rules, and the gradual shift is towards ommission - but here’s one newspaper’s style guide’s advice: > [@](#): > > Do not use full points in abbreviations, or spaces between initials, including those in proper names: US, mph, eg, 4am, lbw, No 10, AL Rowse, OJ Simpson, WH Smith, etc. > > Use all capitals if an abbreviation is pronounced as the individual letters: BBC, VAT etc; if it is an acronym (pronounced as a word) spell out with initial capital, eg Nasa, Nato, unless it can be considered to have entered the language as an everyday word, such as awol, laser and, more recently, asbo, pin number and sim card. > **[Guardian style guide: A](https://www.theguardian.com/guardian-style-guide-a)** > > From A\* to José María Aznar Elsewhere it specifies ‘eg’ and ‘Mrs’, but no mention of ‘Boulevard’, and because of its rarity in Britain I’d generally expect it to be written out in full. > [@guizot](#): > > The other pattern is when an abbreviation can be pronounced as though it were a word. Nobody writes “N.A.S.A.,” because everyone can pronounce it as “Nasa.” Same with “NAFTA.” The distinction made in the same guide is between those which are spelt out as individual letters, which are all-caps, and those pronounced are words, which are capitalised then lower case. Hence ‘HIV/Aids’. ---
**Author:** ![Rhythmdvl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-periods-in-bbc-stories/485309/16 "2009-02-11T13:29:24Z")
> [@Alan\_Smithee](#): > > Or am I jumping the gun? That would be Mother S. ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-periods-in-bbc-stories/485309/17 "2009-02-11T14:47:56Z")
> [@GorillaMan](#): > > The distinction made in the same guide is between those which are spelt out as individual letters, which are all-caps, and those pronounced are words, which are capitalised then lower case. Hence ‘HIV/Aids’. Well, the National Aeronautics and Space Agency doesn’t do it that way, and no one in the US ever writes about the North American Free Trade Association by using “Nafta.” Any newspaper can choose its own particular style, and US papers almost always write “AIDS.” ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-periods-in-bbc-stories/485309/18 "2009-02-11T15:47:06Z")
> [@guizot](#): > > Well, the National Aeronautics and Space Agency doesn’t do it that way, and no one in the US ever writes about the North American Free Trade Association by using “Nafta.” > > Any newspaper can choose its own particular style, and US papers almost always write “AIDS.” I wasn’t talking about the US, I was talking about British media, in the context of the OP. (As such, it’s worth noting that the [Times](http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/tools_and_services/specials/style_guide/article986732.ece) and [Telegraph](http://www.telegraph.co.uk/topics/about-us/style-book/1435320/Telegraph-Style-Book-N.html), bastions of Proper English, have ‘Nafta’ and ‘Nasa’ in their style guides. 🙂 ) ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-periods-in-bbc-stories/485309/19 "2009-02-11T16:11:28Z")
> [@Alan\_Smithee](#): > > The British have been quietly removing periods from most abbreviations for decades now. I believe they may be stockpiling them. For what purpose, I do not know, but our American prodigality with punctuation may soon put us at some unfortunate disadvantage. Mister President, we must not allow a punctuation gap! ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2009, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-periods-in-bbc-stories/485309/20 "2009-02-11T16:47:07Z")
As has been said, many British writing guides have made a distinction between a “contraction”, in which the last letter remains the same, and an “abbreviation”, in which the last letter is among those removed. No period is put at the end of a contraction. Ed [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/missing-periods-in-bbc-stories/485309.md?page=2)