Does this headline grab you? If so, read on …
By Daily Bruin Staff
June 14, 1998 9:00 p.m.
Monday, June 15, 1998
Does this headline grab you? If so, read on …
Have you ever wondered about the headlines you read in the
newspaper? Think about it: How many stories in The Daily Bruin do
you actually read? If you’re like most people, you probably scan
the headlines, maybe read about the latest USAC scandal or Westwood
residents’ dispute. But what you really want to do is flip to the
classifieds for the crossword puzzle and check to see if you, too,
can get paid to be a research subject.
Who writes the headlines? Most people don’t know; most probably
wouldn’t even think twice about it. The headlines are expected;
they just seem to be there. No, the writers don’t write their own
headlines – not at The Bruin and not at any professional newspaper.
Boy, they’d like to, though. To hear a writer talk, you’d think
writing a headline was the easiest thing in the world. That is,
until you sit those writers down to actually try to write headlines
(not for their own stories, mind you).
Well here’s what you’ve never wondered about before: Copy
editors write the headlines. The copy editor is the newspaper’s
diligent proofreader, the reader’s advocate, The Bruin’s last line
of defense against libel.
It’s the copy editors who know the subtle art behind writing a
headline. They discover the rules behind a good headline: Don’t
break phrases across lines; Don’t be passive; Use subtle word
plays; Give as much information as possible about the story; Draw
the reader into the story. As a copy editor, you learn the
wonderful feeling behind writing a headline that fits just right
and the delight that comes from using a clever pun that may elicit
a chuckle from the keen, cynical reader.
Contrary to popular belief, it’s not the fantastic writing that
gets people to read a story – the headline has to grab their
attention first. Once the reader begins reading the story, great
writing will keep them reading. But what good is a Pulitzer
Prize-winning article if no one reads it in the first place?
That’s where the headline becomes important. There’s no glory in
writing the headlines. It’s an unappreciated job that runs late
into the night. There’s no byline, no glamour. If there’s a
mistake, everyone notices; if the headlines are perfect, no one
cares. That’s just the way it is and copy editors understand
this.
Well, here’s my moment of glory – my byline, my chance to tell
you what I did these past two years working at the Daily Bruin.
Writing headlines was only a small part of it.
Laura Brown
