A headline is defined as the heading of a
news story or article. It is generally placed on the top of the story, printed
in large type and gives the news in an attention-grabbing manner.
The presentation of a news story is
dependent not only on writing its headline but also on its font, font size and
the position on the page.
- uses subject-verb-direct object format, or occasionally passive voice. Think action verb.
- eliminates articles (a, an, the).
- includes verbs in the present tense (or sometimes future tense).
- has no verb;
- may have articles.
Writing a headline involves both the literary and technical aspects. Font size, positioning of text, font style, width of the text and presentation are some of the technical considerations. Selection of words, sentence structure and the headline type are some of the literary aspects.
A shorthand communication as 2-36-2 (two- thirty six-two) means that the story has two columns requiring a 36 point (pt) head arranged in two lines. Shorthand for headlines is written in the following sequence: number of columns, the type size and the number of lines.
Such a headline is also known as a double-decker head in the newsroom or the production department.
The height of type size is measured in points while its width is measured in which is equal to or smaller than about 12 pt., is best used for body text and is rarely used for headlines. Larger than this point is used for headlines that follow a font size in the range of 14-84. Such headlines are also known as display type.
Width, Weight, and Style Width of a headline is decided based on the newspaper columns allotted to the news story. When a headline is bigger than the column space provided, double decker headline is used i.e., it is split in two lines instead of one.
Setting the distance between letters, known as kerning the text, also helps reduce space between the words, allowing the headline to fit into the given width.
Weight of a headline suggests the priority given to the news story by the editor. Weight is also related to the font style chosen for writing the headline, e.g., a story written in Light / Semi Light style has lesser weight than that written in Condensed or Bold.
Similarly, the font style also helps to decide the weight of a news story. The headlines in sans serif font styles are soft news or feature news stories. The headlines in serif fonts have more weight. Newspapers using sans serif fonts only, opt for a font family providing them a variety of font styles and weights.
Deciding News Angle Generally, News Angle means perspective based on some element or point of the story. For example, a story can be written from the perspective of the people or Headline and Lead Writing
Headlines can be classified into various categories based on their structure, context, presentation and positioning.
Functions of a Headline
1. To attract the audience attention-
2.
To figure out your readers -
3. To convey a message which is complete =
4. To facilitate the reader in reading the whole story- Draw the reader into the body cop
1.GETTING ATTENTION
We’ve already seen how headlines get attention by appealing to the reader’s self-interest.
Here are a few more examples of this type of headline:
1. Headlines that give news often use words such as new, discover, introducing, announcing, now, it’s here, at last, and just arrived
2. If you can legitimately use the word free in your headline, do so. Free is the most powerful word in the copywriter’s vocabulary. Everybody wants to get something for free.
3. Other powerful attention getting words include how to, why, sale, quick, easy, bargain, last chance, guarantee, results, proven, and save. Do not avoid these words because other copywriters use them with such frequency. Other copywriters use these words because they work
2. SELECTING THE AUDIENCE:
The headline can select the right audience for advertisement and screen out those readers who are not potential customers. A headline that does a good job of selecting the right audience for the product:
3.DELIVERING A COMPLETE MESSAGE
According to David Ogilvy, four out of five readers will read the headline and skip the rest of the ad. If this is the case, it pays to make a complete statement in your headline. That way, the ad can do some selling to those 80 percent of readers who read headlines only.
4.DRAWING THE READER INTO THE BODY COPY
The headline must compel the reader to read this copy. To draw the reader into the body copy, you must arouse his or her curiosity.
KINDS OF HEADLINE
Headlines fall into two categories: Standard
and Label.
Standard
headlines are the kind of heads we're used to from a lifetime of exposure to
print media. It's really odd that we're so accepting of this approach, as it's
not at all conversational.
A
second general category of head is the label head, or title.
LABEL HEADLINE
This type of headline does not have a
verb. It is a label and is similar to a book title. In short, a headline
without a verb is called a label headline.
A label headline:
This is a headline that
identifies a topic or mentions the theme of a story without saying anything
about the story itself. If it is business story for instance, about a decision
taken by a company to launch a new product, the headline could say “Business
Decision”, or “New Product Launch” without giving an idea of what or who took
the decision, or which kind of product was launched.
Label heads are nouns or
noun phrases without verbs. So they look like they are hanging, without enough
information about the story. They look like ‘abandoned kickers’
The label head is also
used to refer to permanent headlines that appear on specific pages of a
newspaper to introduce specialized sections. For instance, the business section
of a newspaper could have the headline “Business Insight, Business Vanguard, or
Business World.” This headline appears permanently to introduce the business
page, or to “label” the introductory page of the business section of the
newspaper. It could be Sports Today, Punch Sports or Technology Watch.
DESCRIPTIVE HEADLINE
A descriptive headline is the one which
describes the gist of a news story. It majorly focuses on 4Ws and 1H (who,
what, when, where, how) while the why part of the story is often not part of
the headline. Descriptive headlines are also called as How to headline when
they are used for explaining the step-wise process of doing something.
These should tell
the learner what the course or module is about. Learners should
know what to expect
COMMENT HEADLINE
A comment headline is the one that
interprets the news partly. It adds extra meaning to the headline by looking
for something that is going on behind the scenes or by analyzing the
implications of the news immediately or in the long run. Comment does add
colour to the headline and thus enhances its impact. The trend of using comment
in headline is growing these days.
COMMAND HEADLINES
Command headlines tell readers what to do
or what they can learn by reading an article. Companies typically use this type
of headline when creating an advertisement. Most command headlines start with a
strong action verb.
QUOTATION HEADLINE
A quotation headline is the one that uses
quotes in order that its impact is not reduced or lost after it is paraphrased.
A quote is not a story in itself and hence is used to emphasize a news angle or
news point. That is why quotes are used sparsely in headlines.
Examples: I didnot kill her and I do not
want to be hanged. I am in full command and will get a second term: PM
QUESTION HEADLINE
A question headline is the one that
evokes curiosity and highlights speculative points or provokes the reader. It
is also good for pro-and-con stories. Many professionals do not favour it
because it leaves the reader guessing whereas the job of a headline is to make
sure that its meaning is grasped clearly. Examples: Is Shatrughan Sinha on his
way out? Who is number 2 in Rahul’s kitchen cabinet?
EMOTIONAL HEADLINE
Emotional headlines typically target either a positive or negative feeling to encourage an audience to read an article. To do this, writers use powerful words such as affordable or stressed.
WORDPLAY HEADLINE
A wordplay headline uses a creative formation of words and phrasing, typically in the form of a pun or irony. Companies often use these headlines when trying to make a less important topic amusing.
BACKGROUND HEADLINE
Background headlines start with contextual information. This is usually a two-part headline, with the first part providing background and the second half explaining the significance or reason for the first statement.
CONFRONTATIONAL HEADLINE
Confrontational headlines are persuasive, as they attract people who either agree with the headline or have opposing opinions. Posing a controversial stance can entice individuals to read and see whether the article changed or enforced their existing opinions.
Your Progress
1. What is a Headline
- What is the significance of a Headline?
- 3. What process must be followed while writing a Headline?What are the various kinds of Headlines?
- 2 Distinguish between Comment and Quotation Headlines.
- What is a Question Headline? How is it different from Descriptive Headline?
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