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What to Capitalize in a Headline
Copy editors notice a lot of little stuff that other people might not. The online news sites and articles that continue to nudge out traditional news outlets often contain tiny hints that they’re being produced by people who aren’t as well versed in language and style as older forms of media.
Know and follow capitalization style for headlines: It just looks more professional, even to readers who are not consciously focusing on capitalization.
So here’s a simple system offered by AP (Associated Press) that you should consider for any headlines you write:
Capitalize the first word of every letter except articles, coordinating conjunctions, and prepositions of three letters or fewer. There’s one exception: Any word that is the first word in the headline or the last word should be capitalized, regardless of its part of speech. So that last headline, in AP style, would leave one “to” lowercase and capitalize the other:
Knowing Which Loved One to Make Your Will Out To
The biggest problem writers have with this simple system is remember that is and it, unlike in, are not prepositions. Is is a verb and it is a pronoun. So they’re always uppercased in AP style headlines.
For example: Candidate Asks What It Is
Learning target: I can recognize and correct ineffective headlines and create original headlines that accurately follow the parameters of effective headlines.
HEADLINE RULES
Learning Target: analyzing contemporary headlines.
1. Sell the story. A good head involves readers
much like a clever ad.
2. Tell the facts. Precise and specific heads inform
readers instantly of what they may or may not
want to read.
3. Be accurate. All facts, names, numbers, whatever
must be correct.
4. Be objective. Donʼt editorialize.
5. Simple but precise. No fancy words. No weird
constructions. Find the right word to communicate
the meaning.
6. Make tone fit content. Serious story. Serious
headline. Funny story. Funny headline.
Kinds of Headlines
• 1-line-headline
Bricklayers engage in mortar combat
• 2-line-headline
Backers hot for chili
as U.S. official food
• 3-line-headline
Principal adds
six electives
to summer school
• Main/secondary headline
Standing tall
5ʼ-4” guard rises to challenge of leading Tigers
• Main/secondary headline
Driven to destruction
Police play game
of cat and mouse
with illegal racers
• Main/secondary headline
Whole new ballgame
Nolan Ryan makes smooth transition to job
helping oversee stateʼs parks, wildlife areas
• Main/Secondary headline
Up to date
Senior makes over dad
for online auction
• Be as specific as possible in your headline.
Get to the heart of the news.
(not good)
School board discusses items
at heated Tuesday meeting
(better – more specific)
2 board members walk out
over budget argument
• Avoid semicolons. The headline should be a
single sentence, not a collection of sentences.
Hurricane strikes;
school swamped;
pep rally cancelled
Better:
Pep rally cancelled
after hurricane
slams into school
• Donʼt pad headlines with school initials or
dates. Also, avoid initials and abbreviations in
headlines.
Too vague…
2011 MHS FFA plans
to hold annual rodeo
• More specific…
Willie Nelson to appear
at FFA rodeo Saturday
• Put all parts of a verb on the same line
avoid be verbs and linking verbs. Action. Shoot
for present tense or future tense.
(weak)
Spongebob will
attend Mensa meeting
purely as spectator
(better)
Spongebob to attend
Mensa meeting
purely as spectator
• Put all parts of a verb on the same line
Strive for present/future tense, action verbs
(weak)
Nichols will
not appear
in court
(better)
Nichols avoids
district court
appearance
• No articles. Use a comma instead of “and”
Heat wave blisters California, Texas
• No clichés.
Swimmers dive into season
Golfers swing into action
Exchange students say ʻHasta la vistaʼ
Math Club multiplies
Football team tackles opposition
Drama Club acts up
Military recruiters say, ʻI Want Youʼ
• Do not repeat key words or phrases
from the main headline into the secondary headline
wrong
Pocket lasers banned
Authorities ban laser pointers
( Just in case you didnʼt
catch it, the repetition is
the word “laser” and
“ban”)
better
Pocket lasers banned
Principal cites injuries, class disruptions
(This headline provides
twice as much
information in the
same amount of
space! )
• Avoid "headline-ese" either in the form of simplified
spellings or odd synonyms.
Board to meet Vball team destroys
Tuesday nite Southside in finals
Senior play
to continue
thru Easter
• Avoid initials or abbreviations, unless the initials
are instantly recognizable.
From the UT-Austinʼs Daily Texan:
ACLU considers
lawsuit for SFAʼs YCT
• Avoid passive verbs in headlines.
Nope:
Internet fraud is
cause of worry
for administrators
Better:
Internet fraud
concerns
administrators
• It is permissible to use implied passive verbs.
Mosquitos (are) biting into summer fun
Federal grant (is) renewed
• Put all parts of a verb on the same line
(weak)
Big surprise: Nader will
run for president again
(better)
Big surprise: Nader to run
for U.S. president again
• Do not end a line with a preposition
Baseball team ready for
playoff game, coach says
• Do not end a line with a preposition
No love lost between
Longhorns, Sooners
• When separating two sentences in a headline,
do so with a semi-colon.
Bardwell named Educator of the Year;
experts call it sign of plunging standards
• The main headline should never be dependent on a kicker or other secondary headline.
(incorrect)
If elected in November, Obama
Says he will get U.S. out of Iraq
(correct)
Getting out
Obama promises to end Iraq war
• Alliteration in headlines should be used sparingly and in appropriate situations.
Acceptable:
New Planetary Puzzlers
A distant, oversize world causes cosmic confusion
Take ʻmeowtʼ
to the cat show
Annual festival of felines begins today
• Unacceptable:
Cheneyʼs chest chink
Vice presidentʼs thumper goes thud
• The headline should reflect the mood of the story.
Band itching for practice
as soon as mosquitos killed
• Be careful of word use and misinterpretation.
Bears capture playoff birth
Bush, Kerry
butt heads
Panda mating fails;
veterinarian takes over
Police Say Man Hid
Crack in Buttocks
A few more rules …
• Avoid contractions
• Do not end a headline with a period
• Avoid names unless they are easily recognizable
• Always use single quotes in headlines
Headline style
Do not center headlines
Start headline flush left on
column
Double or triple headlines should
be close to the same length
Write
a headline for “3 bears” news story.
1. Remember
the story of The Three Bears. Who were
the characters? What happened? What was the climax of the story?
Write 3 possible headlines for that story, if it were to be written as a
news story. Include a secondary headline.
2.
Change
these titles to headlines
1. The Three Little Pigs
2. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
3. Indiana Jones
4. Tool Time
3.Here
is a short story. Write a headline and secondary headline for
it.
CAMP
DOHA,
Kuwait -- The battle for Baghdad
began Tuesday night as
U.S. ground forces entered the "Red Zone."
U.S. Army and Marine ground forces
advanced on separate
axes into the swath of territory around Baghdad that is
defended by
the Republican Guard and has been characterized by U.S.
commanders
as the most strategically vital and treacherous of the
war.
Although still 50 miles or more from
the capital, the attack
brought the U.S. military one step closer to its
ultimate objective:
the capture of Baghdad and the toppling of the government
of
President Saddam Hussein.
4. Write
three possible headlines for this story.
Brad Jones and Kim Smith always
said the sky was the limit as far as their love was concerned. Last week they
proved it by getting married--in midair.
Jones and Smith and a daring pastor, the
Rev. Charles Brown, strapped on parachutes Saturday morning and jumped out of a
plane at 10,000 fee. The trio clasped hands to form a ring while the Rev. Brown
conducted the ceremony.
5. What’s
wrong with these headlines? Using the above rules, in a complete sentence, write out what is wrong with the sentence and then rewrite and correct the headline.
lWife charges husband killed her for money
lMan who shot himself accidentally dies
lBoy chasing fox found rabid
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