On Thursday, images of Confederate flags continued on front pages, this time including in North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. I’m noting this for a third day now because I can’t remember a story that spread the way this one has. Unlike simply reporting on big news from other places, newspapers around the country are offering space for debates on the flag’s presence in their own communities. Watching it this week has been like watching a ripple. Here’s our collection from Tuesday, and here’s our collection from Wednesday. Today, two front pages from Alabama show flags coming down in Montgomery.
One more thing I’ve noticed — some places have called it the rebel flag or the battle flag in headlines. I asked the Associated Press about their guidance on this. Here’s the stylebook entry:
Confederate States of America: The formal name of the states that seceded during the Civil War. The shortened form the Confederacy is acceptable in all references.
There was this, too, from Ask the Editor:
Q. Is Confederate capitalized when referencing the stars and bars flag? from, St. Paul, Minn. on Tue, Jun 23, 2015
A. AP news stories use Confederate flag (cap C, lowercase f).
That’s the generic, first reference term the AP uses, I’m told. And yes, the Confederacy had many flags.
Here’s today’s collection of fronts, via Newseum:
Dothan Eagle, Dothan, Alabama:
Montgomery Advertiser, Montgomery, Alabama:
The News-Press, Fort Myers, Florida:
News & Record, Greensboro, North Carolina:
Tribune-Review, Greensburg, Pennsylvania:
The Patriot-News, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania:
The Citizens’ Voice, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania:
Oshkosh Northwestern, Oshkosh, Wisconsin:
