Mark Twain, in the autobiographic book Life on the Mississippi (1883), used the term within quotes, indicating reported speech, but used the term "negro" when writing in his own narrative persona. [19] Joseph Conrad published a novella in Britain with the title The Nigger of the "Narcissus" (1897); in the United States, it was released as The Children of the Sea: A Tale of the Forecastle; the original had been called "the ugliest conceivable title" in a British review [20] and American reviewers understood the change as reflecting American "refinement" and "prudery." [21] The US edition of Joseph Conrad's The Nigger of the "Narcissus" was called The Children of the Sea. 20th-century United States Pietikäinen, Sari (2002). "Etniset vähemmistöt uutisissa". In Raittila, Pentti (ed.). Etnisyys ja rasismi journalismissa. Tampere: Tampere University Press. pp.25–26. ISBN 951-44-5486-3. Leffert, Catherine (March 13, 2019). "Students, professor use 'N-word' during class at SU's Madrid program". The Daily Orange . Retrieved November 19, 2019.

Ehrenstein, David (March 19, 2007). "Obama the 'Magic Negro' ". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved May 12, 2010.Harold R. Isaacs in: Encounter, vol. 21, 1963, p. 9 ( Google Books). Compare Harold R. Isaacs: Idols of the Tribe: Group Identity and Political Change. Harvard University Press, 1989, p. 88 ( Google Books).

Nagourney, Adam (January 29, 2009). "Candidate Linked to Obama Parody Song Leaves Race for G.O.P. Chairman". The New York Times. Bain, Marc (November 13, 2017). "Ta-Nehisi Coates Gently Explains Why White People Can't Rap the N-Word". Quartz . Retrieved May 24, 2019.Patricia T. O'Conner; Stewart Kellerman (2010). Origins of the Specious: Myths and Misconceptions of the English Language. Random House Publishing Group. p.134. ISBN 978-0-8129-7810-0 . Retrieved August 18, 2017.

Profanity in lyrics: most used swear words and their usage by popular genres". Musixmatch. December 16, 2015 . Retrieved May 24, 2019. a b Kennedy, Randall (2002). Nigger: The Strange Career of a Troublesome Word. Pantheon Books. pp.36–37, 91–111. ISBN 978-0-9650397-7-2. Asim, Jabari (2008). The N Word: Who Can Say It, Who Shouldn't, and Why. HMH. ISBN 978-0-547-52494-8. Minow, Nell. "Cold Brook movie review & film summary (2019) | Roger Ebert". www.rogerebert.com . Retrieved November 20, 2019. Harvard, Sarah (March 7, 2019). "College student delivers presentation to call out professor for using n-word in class". The Independent. Archived from the original on June 20, 2022 . Retrieved November 18, 2019.The implicit racism of the word nigger has generally rendered its use taboo. Magazines and newspapers typically do not use this word but instead print censored versions such as "n*gg*r", "n**ger", "n——" or "the N-word"; [35] see below. The term " colored" or "negro" became a respectful alternative. In 1851, the Boston Vigilance Committee, an abolitionist organization, posted warnings to the Colored People of Boston and vicinity. Writing in 1904, journalist Clifton Johnson documented the "opprobrious" character of the word nigger, emphasizing that it was chosen in the South precisely because it was more offensive than "colored" or "negro". [17] By the turn of the century, "colored" had become sufficiently mainstream that it was chosen as the racial self-identifier for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). In 2008 Carla Sims, its communications director, said "the term 'colored' is not derogatory, [the NAACP] chose the word 'colored' because it was the most positive description commonly used [in 1909, when the association was founded]. It's outdated and antiquated but not offensive." [18]