Jargon of the day: First reference
When someone is first mentioned in a news story, their first and last name should be typed out. From then on, their last name can be used as a reference to that person. When the first and last name of a person is used as the initial reference to that person, this is called first reference.
The purpose of only using the persons last name through out the rest of the story, is to keep the article brief and straight to the point. Lets say the person in question was Joe Smith. It would be repetitive and sort of annoying to write out Joe Smith every time the story referred to that person. Instead, just Smith would be used after the first reference.
Here is an example of a first reference in a recent story from the Pocono Record. The story is about the ending of the TV show ER.
When Dr. Peter Favini started working in the emergency room 23 years ago, he constantly heard the same question.
"Everyone used to ask, 'So when are you leaving (the ER)?'" said Favini, the chief of emergency medicine at Pocono Medical Center in East Stroudsburg. "I kept telling people, 'This is what I do, emergency medicine is what I'm trained in.' People didn't understand that."
Notice how the doctors full name is used the first time his name is mentioned, and the second time, only his last name is used.
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Sometimes I look back at the first reference of an unfamiliar person after reading the last name later in a news article. Using a full name in later references would be helpful for readers and listeners who want to get to know the person in the news story. It may seem time-consuming for reporters and news presenters, especially be broadcasting, but it’s worth doing at the service of readers and listeners.
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