The Associated Press has deleted a tweet that was posted on Thursday, which gave guidance on AP style that went viral over its advice not to call French people "the French".
"We recommend avoiding general and often dehumanizing 'the' labels such as the poor, the mentally ill, the French, the disabled, the college-educated," it said. "Instead, use wording such as people with mental illnesses. And use these descriptions only when clearly relevant," the deleted tweet said.
Screenshot
© Twitter/APStylebook
The tweet swiftly became the source of brilliant satire on Twitter, with the French embassy in the US joining in the fun as it briefly changed its name.
After deleting the tweet, AP also sent a reply that said the inclusion of "the French" in the list of examples was "inappropriate".