tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6051744883907551402.post6706953992187908038..comments2024-03-29T06:29:02.182-04:00Comments on You Don't Say: You call that a great headline?John McIntyrehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03559687583130468871noreply@blogger.comBlogger49125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6051744883907551402.post-50591328744468064202018-09-23T17:52:38.095-04:002018-09-23T17:52:38.095-04:00No, before moving to Anaheim No, before moving to Anaheim The Phil Hendrie Showhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02653462112794525814noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6051744883907551402.post-42187960306321628992010-03-30T02:35:54.042-04:002010-03-30T02:35:54.042-04:00The best headline I 've ever seen comes from a...The best headline I 've ever seen comes from a Brazilian newspaper, it read something like this:<br /><br />Batman's escape may allow him to rearticulate Justice League. (the original portuguese is "fuga de Batman pode rearticular Liga da Justiça")<br /><br />No misspellings and the headline actually is very in context with the story. The catch is, in Brazil is very common for bandits and felons to receive a nickname, and this one was called Ricardo "Batman", and he created a militia called "Justice League". I just don't know if other members also had appropriate knick names.franksandshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09121751961425649099noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6051744883907551402.post-28525572714864142472010-03-07T21:57:48.817-05:002010-03-07T21:57:48.817-05:00"Freedom’s just another bird with nothing lef..."Freedom’s just another bird with nothing left to lose"<br /><br />A cutesy headline with nothing related to music and obviously trying too hard to be cute. <br /><br />--------<br /><br />"Skywalkers in Korea Cross Han Solo"<br /><br />This headline is innocently written with no pun intended. It doesn't seem as fake as the one above. The story is about skywalkers who cross the han river solo. So it seems appropriate. It is a coincidence that it has anything related to Star Wars. <br /><br />And for people who don't get the title. Skywalkers (plural) are crossing the Han River individually (solo) as opposed to crossing the river AT THE SAME TIME or ONE AFTER ANOTHER (not solo). <br /><br />Get it now?Raven Leehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16559296181592356763noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6051744883907551402.post-711340467385413382010-01-15T08:00:43.257-05:002010-01-15T08:00:43.257-05:00Such headlines may get me to read a story. Works! ...Such headlines may get me to read a story. Works! <br /><br />But more than a couple of them will make me stop reading the paper. Fail!The Ridger, FCDhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01538111197270563075noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6051744883907551402.post-60920007386568075092010-01-14T17:13:38.911-05:002010-01-14T17:13:38.911-05:00BTW I appreciate Mr. Owens commenting here since i...BTW I appreciate Mr. Owens commenting here since it was his tweet that sparked this discussion (assuming the commenter and tweeter are the same). <br /><br />But I believe he has his conclusion exactly backwards: The headline has a lot of people talking about the headline, not the story; it calls attention to itself rather than providing a seamless entry into the information below. <br /><br />Thus it is even worse than a dull hed: It impedes understanding instead of helping it.Brian Bhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00498609204322296177noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6051744883907551402.post-44728987324025175292010-01-14T12:45:47.795-05:002010-01-14T12:45:47.795-05:00Come on, us copy editors never get to have any fun...Come on, us copy editors never get to have any fun. Why shouldn't we play around with headlines? It's all "reader this" and "reader that". What about us???Brian Bhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00498609204322296177noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6051744883907551402.post-73752193472006263662010-01-14T09:01:33.366-05:002010-01-14T09:01:33.366-05:00No, but a famous Cincinnati Enquirer sports headli...No, but a famous Cincinnati Enquirer sports headline, "Boston College nails Holy Cross," comes close.John McIntyrehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03559687583130468871noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6051744883907551402.post-39291624901344619502010-01-14T08:56:57.029-05:002010-01-14T08:56:57.029-05:00As a former newspaper guy who loves wordplay, I...As a former newspaper guy who loves wordplay, I've enjoyed all this talk about headlines as extreme sport. I'm here just to report the one headline that has stayed indelibly etched in my mind since I was a young man in the '70s. This is an actual head from the old Boston Herald during the conflicts between the Catholic church and various governments re: birth control:<br /><br />Pope: No Dope.<br />Will Kill Pill Bill.<br /><br />I swear, this actually ran. Can you beat that?Steve Parkerhttp://www.marketingdissector.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6051744883907551402.post-25018487761531942332010-01-13T09:12:18.628-05:002010-01-13T09:12:18.628-05:00"Rearranging deck chairs on the Titantic"..."Rearranging deck chairs on the Titantic"<br />How's that for a headline for this post?<br />(There are some people out there with A LOT of time on their hands.<br />Gotta run...)Gilbert O'Sulimannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6051744883907551402.post-75304386654094777462010-01-13T01:58:02.021-05:002010-01-13T01:58:02.021-05:00Who would pass up such a headline? So what if it s...Who would pass up such a headline? So what if it says, "Look how clever I am"? What would the alternative be? Just something boring.Timnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6051744883907551402.post-25020715772606200332010-01-12T21:24:33.544-05:002010-01-12T21:24:33.544-05:00Still more Facebook comments:
Linda Felaco: Yet ...Still more Facebook comments: <br /><br />Linda Felaco: Yet another reason to spike the Han Solo head, as if we needed more: "cross" can be both a verb and a noun, and as a verb has more than one meaning, and there's nothing in the headline to let you know which of "cross"''s several meanings is meant.<br /><br />Gary Kirchherr: Well, of COURSE the first thing you think of is "Star Wars." That's the point. I really, really doubt that gentle reader is going to feel "cheated" (!) because it's not. And getting back to Tim's point: Why won't the reader feel cheated about the allegedly great "Freedom" headline, given that it has nothing to do with Joplin?<br /><br />Jo Parker: So why would you want someone to think of "Star Wars" when that isn't what the story is about? Why is that a good (or even acceptable) thing?<br /><br />Linda Felaco: Why does a play on the title of a song sung by Janis Joplin have to have anything to do with her personally? Do Star Wars heads have anything to do with George Lucas?<br /><br />Bruce DeSilva: I think it's stupid because it gives me no idea what the story is about.<br /><br />Gary Kirchherr: I disagree, Bruce. If there were no "Star Wars," the headline would make perfect sense, and no one would be kvetching that it "doesn't work both ways." Look. I don't know you guys, I have nothing against you at all, but this pedantic criticism reminds me of those whiny, crusty editors who wouldn't let "kids" in copy or headlines unless it was about goats. The headline's clever. Readers liked it. Lighten up.<br /><br />Bruce DeSilva: You only know what it's about after you read the story.<br /><br />Tim Lawson: To Linda: John rightly said "the allusion should have some connection with the story." In this case, there is an allusion to a very specific song that has nothing to do with the story.<br /><br />Linda Felaco: Here's a test: Put the so-called clever headlines in one column and the stories in another, and see if people can actually match them up. That should be entertaining.<br /><br />Paul Ybarrondo: I would've killed the "Freedom" headline in half a heartbeat. Why is it good? It's every bit as contrived as the Star Wars headline, and wrong to boot. The bird had plenty left to lose. Starting with its life. <br /><br />Jo Parker: Gary, how do you know how many readers liked vs. disliked it? Metrics these days can easily measure how many people are enticed into reading a story online. We can even tell how long they will dwell on a link that they click. I can tell you time and again that they are absolutely turned off by headlines that don't let them know what a story is really about. I have been in the clever seat, amused myself to no end and the darling of headline contests. Boy, did I have a shock when metrics were attached to my work. It’s a harsh lesson, but one that needed to be learned.John McIntyrehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03559687583130468871noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6051744883907551402.post-50065612982149962412010-01-12T21:24:11.693-05:002010-01-12T21:24:11.693-05:00Additional comments from Facebook:
Linda Felaco: ...Additional comments from Facebook:<br /><br />Linda Felaco: Not sure why this guy is tweeting a 3-year-old headline (which, BTW, was on an AP story, not WaPo), but it spawned quite a lengthy discussion on Testy Copy Editors at the time. I too much prefer the "Freedom" head.<br /><br />Ben Welter: The worst headline to hit the slot during my years at the Pioneer Press in St. Paul topped a photo that showed striking firefighters standing by as a car burned near their station:<br /><br />DIDDLING WHILE CHROME BURNS<br /><br />Jo Parker: ohmy. "Diddling"?<br /><br />Linda Felaco: I kind of like the diddling one. At least it's not a pop-culture reference.<br /><br />Jo Parker: Except, um, "diddling" is slang for something I hope the firefighters weren't doing in the photograph.<br /><br />Linda Felaco: The primary meaning of diddle is to cheat; swindle; hoax. Which still doesn't really fit. Perhaps these things are best not examined too closely.<br /><br />Linda Felaco: Has anyone been able to figure out why a story from 2007 is suddenly "news" again?<br /><br />Jo Parker: Linda, my dictionary has primary meaning as "to move back and forth in a jerky or rapid manner; jiggle" then moves on to masturbation.<br /><br />Tim Lawson: I completely agree on the Post headline. When was it from? I know it's not recent. But ... what does the Sun story have to do with Janis Joplin?<br /><br />Gary Kirchherr: OK, granted, the "Han Solo" headline isn't the greatest headline ever written because it doesn't "work both ways." But not endorsing it for that reason alone is draconian. Would you really kill it for that reason alone?<br /><br />Charles Apple: It was probably written by a fresh-out-of-school Wookie. *snicker*<br /><br />Linda Felaco: Tim, et al.: Here's the link to the discussion thread on Testy Copy Editors back in 2007 when the "Han Solo" story first ran: http://www.testycopyeditors.org/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=8032&hilit=Skywalkers+in+Korea+Cross+Han+Solo<br /><br />Jo Parker: Gary, my first thought after reading that headline was "Star Wars." In my opinion, if you send a reader on a mental wild goose chase, that reader can feel confused or cheated. It's a real disservice, and I would've killed it so fast it would've made your head swim.John McIntyrehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03559687583130468871noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6051744883907551402.post-82434154679262012642010-01-12T20:04:21.181-05:002010-01-12T20:04:21.181-05:00And was it the NY Post or the Daily News that, aft...And was it the NY Post or the Daily News that, after the recent underwear bomber incident, ran GREAT BALLS OF FIRE!Mr. Wonderfulnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6051744883907551402.post-83706393377695455132010-01-12T19:33:09.976-05:002010-01-12T19:33:09.976-05:00Mr. McIntyre, I agree with you and several comment...Mr. McIntyre, I agree with you and several commenting here about the Han Solo headline. I failed to make it across the Han myself. I wondered what skywalkers are and how plural skywalkers can be solo. I concluded I don't understand the headline. It implied that the article also would require too much work from me. The headline drove me away. I'd rather see a clear and concise headline that points me to an article and compels me to read it.Pat Murklandhttp://twitter.com/Murklandnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6051744883907551402.post-41748011663719679852010-01-12T19:08:16.247-05:002010-01-12T19:08:16.247-05:00My favorite headline is one from the San Jose Merc...My favorite headline is one from the San Jose Mercury News. When the transit authority named its new light-rail system Santa Clara Area Transit and adopted the acronym SCAT, only to learn that the word also means animal droppings. The headline on the story: <br /><br />Dung, dung, dung went the trolleyAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6051744883907551402.post-420950993652632532010-01-12T17:43:49.979-05:002010-01-12T17:43:49.979-05:00After the Los Angeles Rams' last game in the L...After the Los Angeles Rams' last game in the L.A. Coliseum before moving to St. Louis, they got trounced by -- I think -- the New Orleans Saints. The headline in the L.A. Times was 'Arrivederci Aroma, Rams Stink Up the Coliseum.'Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6051744883907551402.post-31416522840740012602010-01-12T17:26:29.981-05:002010-01-12T17:26:29.981-05:00"freedom".. what's the "nothing..."freedom".. what's the "nothing left to lose" part about? Not the story, onviously.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6051744883907551402.post-90492083734112555772010-01-12T17:07:39.392-05:002010-01-12T17:07:39.392-05:00My idea of a headline is to tell me what a story i...My idea of a headline is to tell me what a story is going to be about, not confuse me in order to get me to click on it. Thus, headline fail.Patricknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6051744883907551402.post-8043241282241504722010-01-12T15:32:53.395-05:002010-01-12T15:32:53.395-05:00I like clever heads, too, but I agree with John M....I like clever heads, too, but I agree with John M. No surprise. I also wonder how this headline would play in search engines. Give its location, isn't that a key issue?<br />John RussialAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6051744883907551402.post-5488175862924707272010-01-12T15:14:53.779-05:002010-01-12T15:14:53.779-05:00It's a good headline. It only took a look at t...It's a good headline. It only took a look at the accompanying picture to know what the story was about. This is just a case of sour grapes on McIntyre's part.Robnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6051744883907551402.post-39447963644260550042010-01-12T15:09:14.435-05:002010-01-12T15:09:14.435-05:00I was in New York on business when the Eliot Spitz...I was in New York on business when the Eliot Spitzer scandal broke. The NY Post carried the headline "Ho No!"Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6051744883907551402.post-64088532185608816242010-01-12T14:33:11.021-05:002010-01-12T14:33:11.021-05:00I think the headline's awesome (when seen with...I think the headline's awesome (when seen with the picture that accompanies it). I agree with those who say it did its job: made you read the article. However, Mr. McIntyre makes great points and has given me something to think about when I write headlines. Interesting post.Leigh Annhttp://www.myfamilydoctormag.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6051744883907551402.post-66354701613825942982010-01-12T14:03:40.697-05:002010-01-12T14:03:40.697-05:00the old war reporting chestnut: navy pilots fly ba...the old war reporting chestnut: navy pilots fly back to frontAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6051744883907551402.post-78354228053912654922010-01-12T14:00:55.093-05:002010-01-12T14:00:55.093-05:00i'm not with you on this one, john. i would be...i'm not with you on this one, john. i would be more impressed with your argument if your freedom-example would have a real connection with the story. you can't blame example one for a missing connection between head and story and then praise example two that has the same problem. <br />i think the skywalker-headline is brilliant in connection with the photo. you would be more convincing if you wouldn't compare this headline with a head for another story but try to find a better, more attention-grabbing headline for this specific story - good luck with that one. (sorry for the mistakes - i'm not a native speaker/writer)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6051744883907551402.post-72816545798511644172010-01-12T13:40:49.204-05:002010-01-12T13:40:49.204-05:00I think the fact that the headline has gotten so m...I think the fact that the headline has gotten so much attention speaks for itself.<br /><br />The headline did its job -- got attention to the story. <br /><br />End of story.<br /><br />Great headline. One of the best ever.Howard Owenshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01667800456137944105noreply@blogger.com