One of the hardest things for me to do as a journalist is to write a headline for my story. I feel like I’ve come a long way since I started writing headlines but I still have a long way to go. This assignment was very eye opening for me and extremely helpful!
I found this first headline a few weeks ago. I follow BBC News on Facebook and this came across my screen. I thought it was worded awkwardly and, to be honest, a little strange.
The headline can be misinterpreted as the injured brother and dog killed the baby while they were in the intensive care unit. The headline caught my eye for this very reason and I read the story. It was a terrible way to write it but BBC accomplished what they set out to do.
My next headline is a great headline, in my opinion. There has been a lot of discussion about Guantanamo Bay and what they do to their prisoners. This headline was chilling to me and caught my attention right away. The subhead is also a great example of what a good subhead should look like.
Keela, that's an interesting headline you found. When I read the headline the first time I thought the baby was killed by the injured brother and dog. It was misleading.
ReplyDeleteI had to read your headline three times to make sure I got it right, definitely worded weird. It's also really sad! I felt most of the headlines that stuck out to me were ones that captured by attention and made me feel a certain way. The one you shared did that.
ReplyDeleteIt's important to be clear about these things. With fake news having such a dramatic impact through social media in today's world and the election, writers now have the responsibility of really clarifying the message they're trying to convey.
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