Where the rules come from
Sources
The rule catalog is a curated heuristic set drawn from inclusive-language guidance and, separately, documented dogwhistles so people can notice coded language they may repeat without knowing. It is not an official standard — tune what matters on Rules.
On individual rules, Evidence for this rule means the linked material addresses a specific claim. It does not mean every suggested rewrite is automatically more inclusive. The original wording and each proposed alternative must be reviewed separately for audience, meaning, power, and context. Background reading provides context but is not proof, and Contestedmarks a genuine framing dispute. Links point to living documents; prefer the community’s own guidance when it differs from ours.
How the list was built
Anti-Default reviews two claims separately: whether wording deserves a contextual flag, and whether a proposed alternative is actually clearer or less harmful in that context. A source that supports the flag does not automatically validate every replacement. Category guides are background—not proof for each rule—and disputed framing is labeled contested.
Gender-inclusive
Male-default wording, binary address, and gendered job titles.
- UN Women — Gender-inclusive language guidelines
Direct guidance and alternatives for male-default collectives, occupational titles, and pronouns
- GLAAD — Nonbinary People
Nonbinary-led context for singular they and language that does not assume only two genders
LGBTQ+ respect
Outdated clinical terms, “lifestyle” framing, and affirming pronoun language.
- Trans Journalists Association — Stylebook and Coverage Guide
Trans-led, term-specific guidance for pronouns, identity, medical language, and anti-trans rhetoric
- GLAAD — Terms to Avoid
Direct guidance on homosexual, sexual preference, and lifestyle framing
- GLAAD — Covering the Transgender Community
Assigned-at-birth terminology and when identity details are relevant
- interACT — Intersex Media Guide
Intersex-led terminology and reporting guidance
Ableist language
Disability-as-insult metaphors and outdated medicalized phrasing.
- National Center on Disability and Journalism — Style Guide
Term-specific guidance with identity-first/person-first nuance and community preference
- Rooted in Rights — Disability Writing Guidelines
Disability-community-centered guidance on agency, neutral description, and harmful metaphors
- Autistic Self Advocacy Network — Identity-First Language
Community-led context showing why preferences vary and person-first is not a universal default
Racialized & othering
Coded hierarchy language, racialized idioms, and tech metaphors that pair light/dark or master/slave with good/bad.
- National Association of Black Journalists — Style Guide
Community-specific guidance on racial labels, stereotypes, and non-monolithic description
- National Association of Hispanic Journalists — Cultural Competence Handbook
Direct guidance on immigration status and describing legal circumstances rather than labeling people
- Asian American Journalists Association — Style Guide
Community-specific guidance on Asian American identities, stereotypes, names, and pronunciation
- DC Office of Human Rights — Words Matter
Historical context and alternatives for terms including grandfathered
Colonial & Eurocentric
Discovery myths, development hierarchies, colonial power, and casual appropriation of Indigenous terms. We prioritize Indigenous-led guidance and sources that name exploitation—not institutional prestige.
- Indigenous Journalists Association — Reporting and Indigenous Terminology Guide
Indigenous-led guidance on nation-specific naming, accuracy, identity, and political status
- Wabanaki Alliance — Media & Style Guide
Indigenous-led guidance that explicitly privileges Wabanaki perspective and expertise
- Scotland’s International Development Alliance — Inclusive Language Guide
Connects first/third world and development labels to hierarchy, exploitation, and colonial power
- MSF Anti-Racism Project — Equitable and Inclusive Language
Warns against reductive development and Global South labels; recommends naming places and material conditions
- ALNAP — Use of language
Treats Global North/South as contested relational terms that can expose—or flatten—colonial power
- Inuit Circumpolar Council — Resolution on the use of Inuit
An Inuit-led resolution calling for Inuit rather than Eskimo in research and public documents
- Survival International — Proud, not primitive
Connects primitive, savage, and civilized hierarchies to persecution and forced development
Age, class & workplace / tech defaults
Ageist shorthand, class-coded insults, and hiring or engineering metaphors.
- Joseph Rowntree Foundation — Reporting Poverty
Co-produced with people experiencing poverty; centers structural causes and agency
- Street Sense Media — Reporter’s Guide
Specificity and self-identification in reporting on homelessness
- Jobs for the Future — Language Matters Guide
Distinguishes skills, credentials, pay, and barriers instead of deficit labels such as unskilled
- AARP — Language of Aging
Research with adults 50+ supporting factual, non-monolithic descriptions
- National Center to Reframe Aging — Communication Best Practices
Evidence-based alternatives to burden, crisis, and decline narratives
- NIST — Workforce Diversity and Inclusion
Skills-focused hiring criteria instead of subjective similarity and culture screening
Coded language & dogwhistles
Far-right and conspiracy phrases that can look ordinary to outsiders. We flag them so people can learn — many are soft heads-ups, because intent isn’t always present. Turn the Coded category off on /rules if you only want inclusive-style checks.
- Anti-Defamation League — Hate Symbols Database
Term-specific documentation for 14/88, echo parentheses, Blood and Soil, Honkler, and related symbols
- American Jewish Committee — Translate Hate
Documents antisemitic codes while distinguishing contextual uses of terms such as globalist
- Institute for Strategic Dialogue — Extremism Glossary
Specialist definitions and context for extremist movements, narratives, and coded terms
- Southern Poverty Law Center — Cultural Marxism
Documents the phrase’s conspiracy lineage and movement into mainstream smear rhetoric