'Honorifics' are the titles we use to address people in formal language, including: Mr, Ms, Mrs, Dr, Sir, Your Honour, etc. They can be used to raise the register of communication, and to appeal to the positive face needs of the person to whom one is referring.
However, in April 2022, the Sydney Morning Herald, The Age and the Brisbane Times newspapers (all run by the same company: Nine Entertainment) announced that they will no longer be using honorifics in the same manner when citing people's names in their articles.
Sydney Morning Herald: With due respect, why we're moving away from Mr and Ms
Useful quotes:
'As part of an updated version of the style guide we use to help our journalists produce engaging, clear and consistent copy, we’ve decided we will no longer routinely give people honorifics... Whether they be a prime minister, a president, a doctor or a professor, after initial use of their title in our news stories, their surname alone will follow. With a few exceptions for things such as clarity, no more “Mr”, “Ms” or anything else.'
'We mean no disrespect to anyone but feel the time is right to make this move. For all its established standards, English is not static; new words appear, others die out, meanings and society’s expectations of how language is used alter.'
'In a change no doubt sped up these days by the internet, English, not to mention society, has become less formal in many public spheres over many decades. With that has come reduced use of honorifics in everyday life.'
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The Sydney Morning Herald also published this opinion piece on the matter, which goes into more detail about the history of honorifics:
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