God vs. god: In reporting on religion, sometimes a typo really is just a typo

Anecdotally at least, we at GetReligion have noticed an increasing use of "god" — as opposed to "God" — in mainstream media content.

We've seen the same thing related to "bible" — as opposed to "Bible."

We are, of course, nerdy enough about religion journalism and style that we occasionally focus on such intricacies of the Godbeat, including these past posts:

"Just what we need, a #journalism culture war over AP style for the Almighty": http://t.co/mpzSUzFBqI #religion pic.twitter.com/oqIuWdsjtU

— GetReligion (@GetReligion) March 27, 2015

B-I-B-L-E with a lowercase 'b': Hey @WSJ, what's up with that?: http://t.co/EMyYV6EpWd #journalism #Godbeat pic.twitter.com/PFGBlBSrVp

— GetReligion (@GetReligion) July 27, 2015

As we've mentioned before, the Associated Press Stylebook — the journalist's bible (with a lowercase "b") — has this entry concerning when to capitalize God:

gods and goddesses Capitalize God in references to the deity of all monotheistic religions. Capitalize all noun references to the deity: God the Father, Holy Ghost, Holy Spirit, Allah, etc. Lowercase personal pronouns: he, him, thee, thou.Lowercase gods and goddesses in references to the deities of polytheistic religions.Lowercase god, gods and goddesses in references to false gods: He made money his god.

Concerning "bible" vs. "Bible," AP says:

Bible Capitalize, without quotation marks, when referring to the Scriptures in the Old Testament or the New Testament. Capitalize also related terms such as the Gospels, Gospel of St. Mark, the Scriptures, the Holy Scriptures.Lowercase biblical in all uses.Lowercase bible as a nonreligious term: My dictionary is my bible.

The Religion Newswriters Association's Religion Stylebook is another excellent resource for questions:

Faith terminology & style questions? @ReligionReport's Religion Stylebook has the answers. http://t.co/xvNMrntcw8 https://t.co/TSTiZ1UnGV

— Religion Newswriters (@ReligionReport) July 28, 2015

Having read our past musings on the above style issues, a GetReligion reader called this tweet from a Politico journalist to our attention:

When Jimmy Carter received the diagnosis he said he was at ease...Citing his faith he says it's in the hands of god. pic.twitter.com/RW3eQ4UOjv

— Beatrice E. Peterson (@MissBeaE) August 20, 2015

Whoa, in the hands of (lowercase) god? Hmmmmm ...

I filed that tweet away until seeing this one from a Kentucky Public Radio journalist this week:

Gay couples still denied marriage licenses in Rowan County, Clerk Kim Davis says decision made under god's authority pic.twitter.com/sCSWWWXLTJ

— Ryland Barton (@RylandKY) September 1, 2015

Curious, I tweeted the journalists and their news organizations:

.@NPR @RylandKY Journalism style question: Do you not capitalize God? http://t.co/5xjn8Kq4XX

— Bobby Ross Jr. (@bobbyross) September 1, 2015

.@Politico @MissBeaE Journalism style question: Do you not capitalize God? https://t.co/ZuHmEc8s0c

— Bobby Ross Jr. (@bobbyross) September 1, 2015

I haven't received a response from the Kentucky journalist or NPR.

But Politico's Beatrice E. Peterson‏ replied almost immediately:

Well, @bobbyross it was a typo on my part. I was multi-tasking real time and left off the big G.

— Beatrice E. Peterson (@MissBeaE) September 1, 2015

So in that case, we have an answer: Sometimes a typo really is just a typo.

I thanked Peterson and assured her that I understand typos. Can I get an amen (Amen?) from the GetReligion faithful?

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