This document provides guidance on writing effective headlines. It outlines expected learning outcomes related to headline writing and defines different headline styles such as flush left, drop line, inverted pyramid, and hanging indentation. The document discusses the important functions of headlines and provides "dos and don'ts" for writing traditional headlines, such as making the headline answer the five Ws, using active verbs, and avoiding thin, fat, label, wooden, mandatory, or screaming headlines. Specific punctuation and formatting guidelines for headlines are also covered.

1. WRITING
HEADLINE
Prepared by: Lea Mae B. Mangaron
Edited by: Sushimita Mae C. Bansil
Supported by: Elsie S. Aribe
Elan Jay B. Sarsona

2. Expected outcomes:
 Appreciation of the values of the headlines
 Knowledge of the different kinds of headlines
 Ability to recognize to criticize headlines styles common in the daily press
 Skill in writing headline types and ability to use them to advantage
 Ability to punctuate headlines
 Skill in counting units of headlines
 Understanding school paper’s headline schedule
 Mastery of headline vocabulary and ability to use headline terms for the
sake of simplicity, brevity, and easy reading.

3. Every news story has a title of its own called HEADLINE.
This headline in printed type much bigger and bolder than
its body. The headline of the Number One story on page
one is BANNER. If it runs across the page may also be called
a STREAMER.

4. The important function of the headline:
 To tell in capsule form what is the story is all about
 To grade the news as to importance ; and
 To make the page look attractive

5. STRUCTURE OF
A HEADLINE

6.  FLUSH LEFT
o Both lines are flushed to the left margin. This is also true with a one line
headline. This has no exact counts for the units in each time.
Ex .
Family planning
Seminar held

7.  DROPLINE OF STEP FORM
o The first line is flushed left while the second is indented. It may consist two
or three, and sometimes four lines of types of the same length, somewhat
less than column in width, so that the first line is flushed to the left, the
second centered, and the third flushed to the right.
Ex .
Local boy scouts
bleed for a cause

8.  INVERTED PYRAMID
o This is self-explanatory. Each of the three four lines in this head is
successively shorter than the line above it.
Ex .
School Launches
Kalinisan
Drive

9.  HANGING INDENTION
o The first line is flushed left. This is followed by the two indented parallel
lines.
Ex .
Chief editor
bats for more
developments news

10.  CROSSLINE OR BARLINE
o A one line headline that runs across the column. The simplest form, it is
the single line across the allotted space. If it run across the page, it is
called a streamer.
Ex .
Local student join CLEAN drive

11.  BOXED HEADLINE
o For emphasis or art’s sake, some headline are boxed;
Full box -
Half box - Campus Paper catalysts for national
development
Quarter box – Local students, teacher bleed for a cause
today
Community involvement
science camp theme

12.  JUMP STORY HEADLINE
o A jump story (a story continued on another page)has a headline of its
own. This maybe the same as the original headline or it may just be a
word, a phrase or group of words followed by a series of dots.
Ex .
Local students…
( From Page 1)

13. DO’S AND DON’TS IN
WRITING
TRADITIONAL
HEADLINES

14. A . Do’s
 Make your headline answer as many W’s as possible.
 The headline should summarize the news story. It should contain
nothing that is not found in the story.
 Positive heads are preferable to negative one.
 Put a verb expressed or implied in every deck.
 Omit articles like a, an, and the and all forms of the verb to be( is,
are, be),unless needed to make the meaning clear.

15.  Use the strongest word in the first line as much as possible.
 The active verb is better than the passive verb in headlines.
 Use the present tense for past stories and the infinitive form for future
stories.
 Write numbers in figures or spell them out depending upon your
needs for your units count.
 Use any of the following headline styles, but be consistent once you
have adopted one.

16. What to avoid in writing headlines?
 FAT HEAD
- the spaces between the letters or word are so crowded that there are no more
spaces between them or that the spaces are so small that several word read as
one.
BSP LUNCHES DRIVE
 THIN HEAD
- the spaces between the letters or words or the space after words in a line are so
wide that the effect is ugly.
B S P L A U N C H E S D R I V E
1. Avoid the following kinds of headlines:

17.  LABEL HEAD
- an incomplete headline, like the label of a product.
CHRISTMAS PARTY
 WOODEN HEAD
- a very weak headline that is devoid of meaning, sometimes due to the
absence of a subject or the lack of verb.
TO HOLD EXCURSION

18.  MANDATORY HEAD
- it gives a command because it begins with a verb.
HOLD DIALOG WITH PRINCIPAL
 SCREAMING HEAD
- it is a big and bold headline of a short and unimportant story. A sensational
head is another kind of screaming headline.

19. 2. Don’t tell the same thing even though you use a different
word. Each succeeding deck should contribute information.
3. Don’t comment directly or indirectly. Avoid editorializing
even in headlines.
4. Unless the subject is implied or has been mentioned in the
first deck, avoid beginning a headline with a verb.

20. 5. Don’t end a line with a preposition. Neither should you
separate a preposition from its object. Don’t confuse a
hanging preposition with a two-word verb that ends with a
preposition.
Wrong: Students vote for
SSG officials
(“for” is a hanging preposition)
Right: Principal bats for
moral values
(“bats for” is a two-word verb)

21. 6. Don’t break off abbreviations, names, and hyphenated
words.
7. Avoid repeating principal words regardless of the number
of decks.
8. Avoid heads that carry a double meaning.

22. 9. Don’t coin abbreviations of your own. Use only those that
are common to the readers like PNRC, DepEd, and DCS.
10. Don’t abbreviate days and months unless figures follow,
as: Mon., Jan. 23

23. Thank you for listening!
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