As a reader, I can tell you just how important a headline is to a story. They are written in big, bold writing to grab the reader’s attention. When I pick up a newspaper or browse a news site on the Internet, skimming through the headlines is one of the first things I do. I am sure a good number of other readers do this same thing.
That really illustrates the importance of a good, solid headline. Not only is it written in big, bold writing to grab attention but it also needs to be well-written in order to spark interest in the reader. Why should I read this story? How is it relevant to me? What is the key point in this article? These are all questions that an editor should keep in mind when coming up with a headline. Not only that, but you should not give away the most important parts in the headline. Otherwise the casual reader may also choose not to read because they feel they already have the whole scoop.
And now my editing mistake for the week. Unfortunately it wasn’t found in a headline but here it is:
About 7:45 p.m. Saturday, police responded reports of shots being fired at the Far West Motel, 410 N. Main. Officers arrived to find that 52-year-old Gregory Nance had been fatally shot. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Just leaving out the simple word “to” is very noticeable in this article.
Skimming the headlines is probably the first thing most readers do! "Not only is it written in big, bold writing to grab attention but it also needs to be well-written in order to spark interest in the reader." I agree. The purpose of a headline is to grab attention!
ReplyDeleteAgreed: I skim the headlines for newspapers frequently; mostly because I work next to piles of them every other day. I've noticed some local papers are better at the attention grabbing headlines than others, but the headlines only match the story half the time.
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