AP says to avoid calling people alcoholics or addicts; health advocates give thumbs up for avoiding stigma of addiction

The Associated Press has updated its Stylebook with this:  "Avoid words like 'alcoholic,' 'addict,' 'user' and 'abuser' unless they are in quotations or names of organization," the wire service posted on Twitter. "Instead, choose phrasing like 'He was addicted,' 'people with heroin addiction' or 'He used drugs'."

The update "is winning applause from public health advocates, who say the clarification discourages stigmas around addiction," Politico Pulse reports. "The change spun out of efforts begun under the Office of National Drug Control Policy, with former staffers like Regina LaBelle and Rafael Lemaitre pushing to change the language, Lemaitre posted on Twitter."