• New York City, not NYC (New York is OK, on second reference).
• Los Angeles, not LA.
• San Francisco, not SF.

Exception: Abbreviations are OK in entry tags — NYC, SF, LA

DATELINE CITIES
Certain cities are so well-known that they do not need to be accompanied by state names. They are:

• Atlanta
• Baltimore
• Boston
• Chicago
• Cincinnati
• Cleveland
• Dallas
• Denver
• Detroit
• Honolulu
• Houston
• Indianapolis
• Las Vegas
• Los Angeles
• Miami
• Milwaukee
• Minneapolis
• New Orleans
• New York
• Oklahoma City
• Philadelphia
• Phoenix
• Pittsburgh
• St. Louis
• Salt Lake City
• San Antonio
• San Diego
• San Francisco
• Seattle
• Washington: Because Washington is a dateline city that stands alone without the “D.C.,” writers using AP style often must clarify in text when they’re referring to “Washington state.”