I cringe whenever I read or hear the media referring to a child by his or her surname. Case in point: Tori Stafford, the eight-year-old girl from Woodstock, Ont. who was sexually molested and then murdered.In media reports she had been identified by first and last name at the beginning of the story, but thereafter it was just Stafford, as in "Stafford's killer....'
It seems to make no difference to the age of the child; it could even be a baby!
This practice is not called for in The Canadian Press Stylebook. Under Names, Nicknames, Initials: "First names are used on second reference for children under 18 except in sports stories..."
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