Should coranavirus be capitalized when writing?

The quick answer is no.

There are numerous "style guides" used by writers, editors, and scientists alike, largely created by people with too much time on their hands to come to any universal agreement. God help us if The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, and Associated Press could ever agree on punctuation or grammar. Even Buzzfeed has their own style guide. Buzzfeed. Yes, folks, we have entered that confusing moment in human development.

But here is where some of the largest style guides fall on the spelling of coronavirus.

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The Associated Press:

The Associated Press Stylebook (used by numerous journalists worldwide) states, "referring to simply the coronavirus is acceptable on first reference in stories."

They're adamant that you include "the" before "coranavirus," because--specifically speaking--there are a number of coranviruses, and COVID-19 is simply the version of coranavirus which developed in late 2019. The AP doesn't want you sounding glib and casual in your writing, so don't forget "the."

The AP's explanation also goes on to describe the family of diseases (SARS, MERS, COVID), and warns writers, "Do not exaggerate the risks presented by any of the three diseases by routinely referring to them as deadly, fatal or the like."

Key here is "routinely referring to them." The AP stresses a focus on facts. Yes, the diseases potentially are fatal, but the vast and significant majority of people survive, many without symptoms. Lack of panic doesn't attract readers and viewers, and lack of readers and viewers means lacks of advertising, which is why it appears broadcast and print media largely ignore this rule.


Chicago Manual of Style:

The Centers for Disease Control follows the Chicago Manual of Style Handbook (which is heavily favored by academic journals), and specifically links to the handbook on their site. The CDC gets bonus points for not creating their own style guide.

In essence, the CMOS Handbook limits capitalization at all cost across all forms of writing, unless the word involves a proper noun or acronym. For example, one would never capitalize "cold" or "flu" by themselves, but if referencing a certain pandemic, like the Spanish Flu, it's capitalized. Same rules apply for coronavirus.


American Medical Association Manual of Style:

Short and simple, it's largely the same as the Chicago Manual. The virus isn't capitalized; acronyms are. They could simply link to the Chicago Manual, but that would mean looking less important in the highly nuanced and petty world of style guides.

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So, in conclusion, no capitalization is needed.

Now, we all can go back to washing our hands and schlepping through another day adorned in pajama pants while questioning the merits of ice cream at 11am.