DECKS
Make each deck (not necessarily each line) a
complete construction. Write the headline so it will
stand alone and make sense, especially when you use it
as the main deck. Consider the following example:
Poor:
Decade of off-duty study
cams degree at Memphis
Better:
Memphis chief earns law degree
after decade of off-duty study
Because headlines are restricted to a small space,
copy editors generally limit headlines to one specific
idea expressed forcefully, rather than several ideas
expressed vaguely. If space permits, editors sometimes
connect two independent thoughts by a semicolon in a
headline — or add another section to the headline (a
second deck) — to include additional important aspects
of the story.
If a story involves a plane crash that kills one crew
member, injure the pilot and disrupts a training exercise,
you should limit the main deck to the death. Subordinate
headlines, or the story, should cover the other news.
BE SPECIFIC
As with all forms of newswriting, the use of
specifics is better than generalities. Note the following
headline:
Auto crash
proves fatal
This headline does not contain nearly as much
information as the headline that follows:
2 die as car
smacks tree
BE POSITIVE
Another custom most headline writers observe is
phrasing headlines in a positive, rather than in a negative
manner. This is based on the principle that a newspaper
is supposed to tell readers what did happen, not what
did not happen.
When writing about a family that escapes injury
when their car overturns and bums on a highway, a novice
headline writer would probably write the following:
No one hurt
in car fire
Given the same story, a good headline writer
composes the following headline:
Family escapes
flaming death
OPINIONS
Headlines on stories dealing with opinion should
show the source of that opinion. If a story is attributed
to a secondhand source, this should be reflected in the
headline. Consider the following examples:
’Courts too lenient’
claims parish priest
NFL players unhappy
with owners’ offer
says arbitrator
REPEATS
You should avoid repeating words in the same
headline deck. Also, watch out for similar phraseology
in adjacent heads and decks. Consider the following
example:
Former Abraham Lincoln journalist
returns to Abraham Lincoln
as public affairs officer
THE FIVE Ws
A good headline generally has the who and the what
of the story in the first line, with the following lines
explaining the how and why, if necessary.
People expect newspaper stories to concern events
that have occurred since the previous edition was
published. Therefore, the when can usually be omitted.
If an event is yet to happen, however, warn the reader
by the inclusion of the when through the use of the future
tense or a specific day or date.
The where in a headline on a local story is generally
omitted. Readers expect their newspapers to print local
stories and will assume a story is local unless the
dateline or headline specifies otherwise.
SHORT SYNONYMS
Use short, vigorous words. Headline writers usually
have a vocabulary all their own. They learn to think in
terms of short synonyms for longer expressions when
writing headlines. Many copy-editing texts contain lists
of short synonyms for headline use. Note the following
examples:
l Named for appointed or elected
l Set for arrange or schedule
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