The media and your story, Part III
Typically, at a newspaper, the story soon goes to a copy editor. The copy editor does the fine editing of style and content, adjusts the story to the required length, formats it, places it on an electronic page blank, and writes the headline.
During this process, the reporter's story may be revised and rewritten for clarity, to add background or new information, or simply to fine-tune and polish the story so it "reads" better.
So if your story was first filtered and processed by the original reporter, it now is being filtered and processed by some other people—and perhaps with no reference at all to the reporter. If it is a really important story it may be scrutinized and adjusted by a number of editors.
Just before the final version goes in the paper, an editor writes the headline. Reporters do not write the headlines on their own stories. Indeed, they usually do not see the headline on their story—or how it was refined and edited by others—until they see it in the paper the next day.
Writing headlines is a true art. But it's one you can influence. A good, clear, concise and interesting story tends to produce a good, clear, concise and interesting headline. A muddled and over-complicated story tends to invite a muddled or misleading headline.
Learn more about how to make your story clear, concise and interesting, through our DO's and DON'Ts.
Clarity Communications Inc. offers professional assistance to help you to get publicity and to deal comfortably with the media. Call us at 604-329-8712 or e-mail us. Your first consultation is free.
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