Headline news is a form of journalism that focuses on short, attention-grabbing headlines to draw reader interest in a story. Effective headlines convey the story’s topic, pique reader curiosity and indicate tone and subject matter. They often include a list or summary and are short enough to remain relevant as the article develops. Headline writers must consider grammatical rules, known as headlinese, which are designed to meet space requirements by using shortened forms of verbs and adjectives, leaving out the present tense (to be), and employing a number of other strategies.
A well-crafted headline influences reader engagement with the story, and a strong headline can make or break the article’s success. Straightforward headlines that accurately reflect the story’s content promote journalistic integrity and foster trust among readers, while clickbait headlines can erode audience trust over time.
The term “headline” is also used to describe the introductory paragraph of a news story, typically with the phrase “who, what, where, when and why.” In newspapers, headlines are usually written by a separate staff, known as the headline desk. Typically, the editors of the paper determine headline size, and another staff member, called the head writer, writes the actual headline. On larger publications, a headline’s type size in height is measured in points, while its width in columns is measured in picas. To avoid confusion, a newspaper’s designer or senior editor may establish a shorthand to refer to a specific headline size, such as 2-36-3, meaning three column, 36 point (3 pt) type.