“Old Geezer” Is Not Politically Correct

The International Longevity Center in New York and the Aging Services of California have put together a stylebook for media professionals called Media Takes: On Aging.  The guide informs the reader of correct and incorrect ways to refer to our older population. 

According to the book, words such as elderly and senior citizen are taboo, while nursing home has been replaced with skilled nursing facility, and its patient is now a resident.   

For more information on the book and other politically incorrect terms (some obvious, others not so obvious), see Jane Gross, Goodbye, Spry Codgers. So Long, Feisty Crones., NY Times, Feb. 11, 2009.

Special thanks to Joel Dobris (Professor of Law, UC Davis School of Law) for bringing this article to my attention.