Photo by U.S. Army/Handout/Reuters 
 
 As many newsrooms struggled to appropriately reflect Chelsea Manning’s gender transition announcement this morning, Wikipedia editors swiftly rewrote the Army private’s page to reflect her new name and gender—with remarkably little controversy. 
 
 Mark Joseph Stern Mark Joseph Stern covers courts and the law for Slate. 
 
 The changes to the Wikipedia page generally follow the AP Stylebook’s entry on transgender, which dictates that writers should “use the pronoun consistent with the way the individuals live publicly.” But that broad command doesn’t pertain to the finer points of pronoun usage, leaving unresolved questions of how to refer to Manning’s actions pre-transition. For more complex linguistic conundrums, Wikipedia editors seem to have follows GLAAD’s suggestions, particularly this decree: 
 
 “Avoid pronoun confusion when examining the stories and backgrounds of transgender people prior to their transition. It is usually best to report on transgender people's stories from the present day instead of narrating them from some point or multiple points in the past, thus avoiding confusion and potentially disrespectful use of incorrect pronouns.” 
 
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 Remarkably, whatever editorial dispute these changes of wrought has been self-contained and ineffectual.* Almost immediately after Manning’s announcement, a few editors changed the entry title and the pronouns. One editor did protest, claiming that “this is a complete inaccuracy. He is still a man, legally and biologically. It does not matter what his wishes are,” and a few tried to undo altered pronouns. But the AP/GLAAD style suggestions have clearly carried the day. 
 
 Wikipedia’s rapid reaction is especially notable in light of the media’s continuing strain to respect Manning’s gender wishes. Slate’s Amanda Marcotte has admonished the press to “start using female pronouns immediately.” Still, many outlets—including, ironically, the AP itself—have struggled. In their early reports, Reuters, the AP, and the New York Times all referred to Manning as a male, though the Times has retroactively removed several usages of “his.” The Huffington Post has declared that it will respect Manning’s preferred female pronouns, even revising the Reuters story to incorporate the change. Politico’s editors, on the other hand, have stated that “we’re going to stay with ‘he’ until he begins his treatment, per AP style ... but it’s a difficult call and we’ll continue to reassess.” 
 
 The press, in other words, has spent the morning debating the matter, while Wikipedia quickly and quietly settled the issue as soon as it arose, capitalizing on its crowdsourced efficiency. Editors may also have learned from past mistakes in the realm of gender identity: In 2008, a transgender journalist found that editors spent weeks shifting back and forth between male and female pronouns. This time, they indulged in no such equivocation. 

 Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images 
 
 Thursday morning, Pfc. Bradley Manning—now Chelsea Manning—released a statement declaring that now that her trial and sentencing is finally over, she would like to embrace her identity as a woman and go forward living that way. This announcement comes as no big surprise to people who have been following the case closely and know that Manning was already transitioning before arrest. This announcement, however, forces a question that the press has largely been avoiding until this morning: How do you refer to Manning's gender in a way that balances respect for the right of individuals to determine their own gender identity with the need for clarity in your reporting? After all, Bradley Manning is a famous, controversial figure who has raised a lot of uneasy questions about national security and human rights. Chelsea Manning, however, is not a famous name at all. 
 
 Given that the United States government has had no compunction about dishing out abominable treatment that tests the boundaries—and many would say blows right past them—of what kind of human rights prisoners awaiting trial deserve, it's not surprising that Manning's ability to explore her gender identity, much less assert her right to be treated as female, has been severely limited. But now the question that's been put on the back burner is being brought to the fore, the mainstream press is faced with a question: After years of calling Manning by the name "Bradley" and using male pronouns, what to do? 
 
 
 
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 The transition is already awkward. Earlier today, the New York Times headline on a Reuters story on Manning's announcement danced around gender pronouns: "Manning Says Is Female and Wants to Live as a Woman." Clearing up the grammar for an updated headline just made the situation worse: "Manning Says He Is Female and Wants to Lives as a Woman." Well, if "he" is female, then isn't the word she? Manning has finally had a chance to express her gender preference. Since most journalists had a notion this was coming, using confusion or surprise as an excuse for those headlines isn't an option. 
 
 The goal here should be to move as quickly as possible from referring to Manning by a male name and male pronouns to her female name and pronouns. The sooner journalists stop writing "Bradley" and start writing "Chelsea," the quicker everyone following this story will adapt—and even change their Google search terms when looking for coverage. A gender-free headline to indicate that this is an in-between stage in coverage makes sense, but with this announcement, Manning herself gave everyone a nice, clean break—a point to just stop saying "he" and start saying "she." 

 New Army Fight Likely as Chelsea Manning Comes Out FT. MEADE, Md. (CN) - The Army private responsible for the massive WikiLeaks disclosure of military secrets set the stage for a new court battle Thursday by announcing a female identity called Chelsea Manning. 
 
 Gender dysphoria had been a major focus of the sentencing for the soldier who was born Bradley, but up until now Manning requested to be indentified as a male. While transmitting thousands of files to WikiLeaks in the Army, Manning had taken secret photos dressed in women's clothes and sometimes used the name Breanna. 
 
 Hours after a military judge handed down the 35-year sentence for the biggest intelligence leak in U.S. history, Manning's lead attorney David Coombs told reporters he would be fighting to secure a pardon and any necessary medical care in Ft. Leavenworth for the WikiLeaks source. 
 
 "In addition to becoming the smartest person on presidential pardons, I'm going to become the smartest person on ensuring that a soldier that who is in confinement, who has gender dysphoria gets appropriate medical treatment," Coombs said yesterday. "I know that recently there was a story, I think Courthouse News ran it, where I think a Ft. Leavenworth spokesperson said, 'I don't think we have certain treatment. That's not what we give.'" 
 
 While a broad range of psychological treatment is available to all soldiers imprisoned at Ft. Leavenworth, hormone therapy and sex-reassignment surgery is not, spokeswoman Kimberly Lewis said in an interview. 
 
 Referring to those policies, Coombs cryptically added, "I'm gonna change that." 
 
 He explained that remark this morning while delivering a statement from Manning. 
 
 "I am Chelsea Manning," the statement read. "I am a female. Given the way I feel, and have felt since childhood, I want to begin hormone therapy as soon as possible." 
 
 Coombs told the Today Show that Manning would not be seeking a transfer from Ft. Leavenworth, an all-male facility that is reportedly the only military prison for service members sentenced to 10 or more years. 
 
 Yesterday, Coombs said in an interview that he was aware of the federal district and appellate precedent ordering prisons to provide their inmates with transgender medical care. 
 
 Indeed, the jurisdiction of the Maryland courtroom where the WikiLeaks source has been tried is subject to a 4th Circuit decision from Jan. 28 this year guaranteeing the possibility of sex-reassignment surgery for all federal inmates in Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, and North and South Carolina. 
 
 The Chicago-based 7th Circuit ruled similarly in 2011, striking down a Wisconsin law banning such medical care. A Boston federal judge granted surgery to a convicted wife-killer last year, and the 1st Circuit is currently mulling that decision on appeal. 
 
 Manning, however, is being held in a military prison in Ft. Leavenworth, out of reach for all of these jurisdictions. 
 
 Hayley Gorenberg, deputy director of the storied LGBT advocacy group Lambda Lega, said Manning's sentence should not involve the "deprivation of any medical treatment she may need." 
 
 "Pvt. Manning should have the right to be evaluated for any and all of her medically necessary treatment," Gorenberg said in an email. 
 
 Manning's fight comes at a time when the Pentagon is trying to paint a more inclusive image about transgender people in the military. 
 
 Under a recent executive order, Veterans Affairs must provide "culturally and clinically competent care" to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender former service members. The Pentagon even hosted an LGBT Pride Month celebration this year, with the "T" included. 
 
 In a surprising turn, Manning's prosecutors even argued in court that the WikiLeaks source's gender dysphoria diagnosis should not have stopped the soldier's deployment, taking a position against the Army's existing regulations. 
 
 Retired Army Col. James Pritzker's Tawani Foundation recently awarded the University of California's Palm Center $1.35 million to establish a Transgender Military Initiative investigating the topic. 
 
 Palm Center director Aaron Belkin had this to add about the treatment of transgender troops in prison: "Without addressing the specifics of one case or another, it would nevertheless be a sad day if the military denied necessary medical treatment to a prisoner." 

 Army Pfc. Bradley Manning will have access to psychiatric services while serving a prison sentence for his role in the WikiLeaks case, but the Army will not provide hormone therapy or sex-reassignment surgery, a spokesman said Thursday. 
 
 Manning, who was sentenced on Wednesday to 35 years in prison, requested through his lawyer on Thursday to be called Chelsea Manning and said he hopes to begin hormone therapy as soon as possible. Manning is scheduled to serve out his sentence at the military prison in Fort Leavenworth, Kan. 
 
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 reset Manning: I want to live as a woman 
 
 Current Army regulations authorize “all necessary medical care” for military prisoners, but the policy for “intersex” surgery is that it’s only covered if it corrects sex gender confusion or ambiguous genitalia “documented to have been present at birth.” 
 
 (PHOTOS: Bradley Manning) 
 
 It will be up to Fort Leavenworth to decide if Manning could pay for what is deemed to be elective surgery himself, a spokeswoman for the Army Medical Command said. 
 
 “This becomes then a command issue,” media relations specialist Maria Tolleson said. “Rules regarding what the U.S. Disciplinary Barracks will allow with regard to elective procedures performed outside of the Military Health System, must be addressed by the USDB.” 
 
 The Pentagon won’t be footing the bill for Manning’s gender reassignment, Army spokesman George Wright said. 
 
 “Inmates at the United States Disciplinary Barracks and Joint Regional Correctional Facility are treated equally regardless of race, rank, ethnicity or sexual orientation,” Wright told POLITICO. “All inmates are considered soldiers and are treated as such with access to mental health professionals, including a psychiatrist, psychologist, social workers and behavioral science noncommissioned officers with experience in addressing the needs of military personnel in pre- and post-trial confinement. 
 
 “The Army does not provide hormone therapy or sex-reassignment surgery for gender identity disorder,” Wright said. 
 
 (Also on POLITICO: Bradley Manning: 'I am a female') 
 
 A representative for Fort Leavenworth, in an interview with Courthouse News, also said the facility provides psychiatric care but does not provide sex-reassignment surgery or hormone therapy. Fort Leavenworth did to respond Thursday to requests for an update. 
 
 Lt. Col. Cathy Wilkinson, a Defense Department spokeswoman, added that as a matter of policy the U.S. military does not provide hormone therapy or gender reassignment surgery to service members, and DoD regulations don’t currently allow transgendered people to serve in the military. 
 
 And a uniformed service member who is dishonorably discharged wouldn’t be eligible for TRICARE coverage, she added. 
 
 Manning’s lawyer, David Coombs, said Manning is not seeking to join a female prison population but that he’s prepared to fight the ruling if Fort Leavenworth doesn’t allow him to have the gender reassignment treatment. 
 
 “I’m hoping that Fort Leavenworth would do the right thing and provide that. If Fort Leavenworth does not, then I’m going to do everything in my power to make sure that they are forced to do so,” Coombs said. “The ultimate goal is to be comfortable in her skin, and to be the person that she’s never had an opportunity to be.” 
 
 The military’s stance that it won’t provide the treatment raises constitutional concerns, the American Civil Liberties Union said in a statement. 
 
 “Without the necessary treatment, gender dysphoria can cause severe psychological distress, including anxiety and suicide. When the government holds individuals in its custody, it must provide them with medically necessary care,” ACLU staff attorney Chase Strangio said. “The official policy of the Federal Bureau of Prisons and most state agencies is to provide medically necessary care for the treatment of gender dysphoria, and courts have consistently found that denying such care to prisoners based on blanket exclusions violates the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution.” 
 
 Boston-based attorney Neal Minahan, who won a federal court case in 2011 against the Massachusetts Department of Corrections to grant his client access to hormone therapy, said that gender identity issues aren’t the same as elective medical treatments, and there’s precedent for allowing access to gender reassignment treatment. 
 
 “This is a typical response from a prison that is taking a transgender inmate, to say well, we don’t do those as a matter of blanket policy,” Minahan said. “That has proved to be not constitutionally adequate in numerous courts over the years. And I expect the same result here in the military context.”
– The decision by the Army private previously known as Bradley Manning to identify from here on out as a female by the name of Chelsea Manning raises a host of thorny legal issues, reports Courthouse News Service. For starters, Manning wants to start hormone therapy immediately in preparation for a sex-change operation, but Fort Leavenworth says neither option is available to inmates at the all-male facility. "I'm gonna change that," says Manning attorney David Coombs. The Army deems sex-change surgery to be elective and thus would not cover the cost, reports Politico. Could Manning foot the bill? Maybe, says a spokesperson for the Army Medical Command, but that decision would be in the hands of Fort Leavenworth. Court cases have established a precedent for federal inmates to receive transgender medical care, but Manning is out of luck because Leavenworth is a military prison, explains CNS. On a different note, Slate blogger Amanda Marcotte thinks the media should immediately honor Manning's wish to be called a she instead of a he. "Even if you disagree with Manning's actions and believe she deserves the harsh sentence she received, her gender identity had nothing to do with her crimes," writes Marcotte. "Most people don't have to transition under as much scrutiny as Manning has suffered; all of us making the switch graciously can help make things slightly easier for her." (Wikipedia is already on board.)