1. COPYREADING AND
HEADLINE WRITING:
More than Just Marks and Words
“You cannot correct unless you know that there is something
wrong.”
RUEL C. FERNANDEZ
Resource Speaker
2. Eagle’s Eyes Ready
40 Filipino pieacekeepers are battling heavily
armed Syrian rebels who are trying to overran UN
encampment on the Golan Heights, Defense Secretary
VOLTAIRE GAzmin says yesterday.
They have high morale Gazmin told reporters, referring
to the group of Filipino peacekeepers defending Area
Position 68 of the United Nations Disengagement
Observer Force (Undof) on the Golan Heights
3. gazmin said the rebels attacked Area Position 68, about
4 kilometers from Area 69, after noon but was repulsed
by the Filipinos
Palace spokeswoman Abigail Valte said on the
government-run Radyo ng Bayan that even without
having to take the challenge thrown by Netizens for the
President and Cabinet members to try using the MRT
themselves, government officials were cognizant of the
problems hounding the MRT.
4. The fire fight was going on bet ween the Filipino
peacekeepers and the rebels as of 5 p.m. in Manila
gazmine said the filipinos had reported no casualties.
He praised the elite troops’ courage and “high morale”.
A military officiasl who asked not to be identify said the
filipino troops manning Area Positions 68 and 69 belonged to
the Philippine
Army’s elite Scout Rangers and Special Forces
Philippine Daily Inquirer, Aug. 31 2014
5. Shades of Green Looms Dark in the Paper
Jose M. Almario was elected Pubic Information
Officer…
Your penis wonderful. I enjoyed using it last night.
He eats, shoots, and leaves.
Political orgasm
6. What is COPYREADING AND HEADLINE WRITING?
It is the way of improving a story and making an
appropriate headline for the article.
The ROLE of Copy Fixers
Good copy fixers keep the spirit and
substance of the story. He/She basically brightens
and polishes the article. He makes the story better
by organizing it better than when it was submitted.
7. Tasks of a Copy Editor
1. Read thoroughly the news or reports.
2. Think of ways to best improve the
news.
3. Check and correct errors in news
context, grammar, punctuations,
spelling, usage, and others.
4. Present the best lead for the news.
8. 5. Remove editorials from news and check
for any libelous statements in the
reports.
6. Simplify words and check for any
redundancy.
7. Organize sequence or order of
paragraphs of the news.
8. Write effective headlines.
Tasks of a Copy Editor
9. Tasks of a Copy Editor
9. Suggest font and font sizes to the
typesetter.
10. Determine columns and decks of
headlines.
11. Correct the copies by using
copyreading symbols.
10. Introduce the group
Introduce the members
Read the tasks
Present the output
14. HEADLINE
Every news story has a title of its
own called a HEADLINE.
This headline in printed type is
much bigger and bolder than its
body which is the story itself.
15. FUNCTIONS
Among the important functions of the
headlines are the following:
to tell in capsule form what the story is all
about
to grade the news as to importance
to make the page look attractive
16. While the lead summarizes
the story, the headline, on the
other hand, summarizes the
lead.
17. SVO pattern
S – Subject
V – Verb
O – Object
What is a subject?
What is a verb?
What is an object?
18. The subject is the doer
of the action.
The verb is the word
that indicates the
action.
The object is the
receiver of the action.
19. MSC library reaps awards
What is the subject? Refer
to rule number 4.
What is the verb?
What is the tense of the
verb? Refer to rule number
5.
20. Why is the headline wrong?
The Seminar on
English proficiency
21. Let us make the headline right!
Mentors join seminar on
English proficiency
What is the subject?
What is the verb?
What is the object?
22. Writing Headlines
Headlines are display windows of
newspapers. It is a quick source of
information about the story.
Well-written headlines
grab the reader's attention
convey clear, concise thoughts
Poorly written headlines
mislead
and confuse a reader
23. Headline / head
The headline or head is
the title of a news story.
While the lead
summarizes the story, the
headline summarizes the
lead. The headline of the
biggest or Number One
story on page 1 of the
newspaper is called a
banner head.
25. Functions of
Headlines
•To tell in capsule
form what the story
is all about
•To grade the news
as to importance
•To make the page
look attractive
26. Tips in headline writing
1. First, read the story for general
meaning.
2. Clues to the headline are usually in
the lead.
What happened?
Who did what?
How did if happen?
27. Dog saves master
A FOUR-YEAR-OLD dog saved the life of
his blind master, Thursday night, but the
canine’s loyalty cost the trusty animal his
life.
28. 3. Use the shortest words possible.
Examples include:
cop – policeman
nab – arrest
mishap – accident
up – increase
down – decrease
thief - robber
Tips in headline writing
29. 4. Have a subject and a verb. Avoid
starting with a verb; the headline
might sound as if it were giving
orders.
Wrong: Revise money mart guidelines
Correct: Central Bank revises money
mart guidelines
Tips in headline writing
30. 5. Use the historical present tense if
the verb is in the active voice.
Wrong: Delgado topped editorial tilt
Correct: Delgado tops editorial tilt
Tips in headline writing
31. Active voice describes a
sentence where the subject
performs the action stated by the
verb.
RTMSCNHS celebrates
nutrition month.
What is the active voice of the
verb?
32. In passive voice sentences, the
subject is acted upon by the verb.
Nutrition month was celebrated by
RTMSCNHS.
If this is a headline it will
become:
Nutrition month celebrated
What is the passive voice of the
verb?
33. 6. Omit the helping verb if the verb
is in the passive voice. Only the
past participle is retained.
Wrong: Drug pushers are nabbed
Correct: Drug pushers nabbed
Tips in headline writing
34. Let US Try this:
Give me the rule violated in the headline
below:
Join DSPC
Rule number 3:
Have a subject and a verb.
Avoid starting with a verb.
Correct: Centralians join
DSPC
35. Let US Try this:
Give me the rule violated in the headline
below:
Teachers took oath
Rule number 5:
Use historical present tense.
Correct: Teachers take oath
36. In one half sheet of paper answer the following:
Give the rule number and the rule violated in the
following headlines and give the correct headlines.
1. Policemen receive awards
Rule number:__________
Rule: ________
Correct: ____________
37. In one half sheet of paper answer the following:
Give the rule number and the rule violated in the
following headlines and give the correct headlines.
2. Buwan ng Wika was
celebrated
Rule number:__________
Rule: ________
Correct: ____________
38. In one half sheet of paper answer the following:
Give the rule number and the rule violated in the
following headlines and give the correct headlines.
3. Students emerged champ
Rule number:__________
Rule: ________
Correct: ____________
39. Answers:
1. Policemen receive awards
Rule number:3
Rule: Use the shortest words
possible.
Correct: Cops receive awards
40. ANSWERS:
2. Buwan ng Wika was
celebrated
Rule number: 6
Rule: Omit helping verb.
Correct: Buwan ng Wika
celebrated
41. ANSWERS:
3. Students emerged champ
Rule number:5
Rule: Use the historical
present tense.
Correct: Students emerge
champ
42. LET’S REVIEW:
What is the pattern in
formulating the headline?
What is subject?
What is verb?
What is object?
43. Which headline is correct?
a. DepEd strikes a deal with PNB
b. DepEd struck deal with PNB
c. DepEd strikes deal with PNB.
d. DepED strikes deal with PNB
45. 7. Use the infinitive for future
events.
Wrong: City Hall will punish anti-
squatting drive
Correct: City Hall to punish anti-
squatting drive
Tips in headline writing
46. 8. Do not use a period at the end of
the headline.
9. Omit articles (a, an, the).
Wrong: A fire hits Tondo slum area
Correct: Fire hits Tondo slum area
Tips in headline writing
47. 10. Use a comma instead of “and” in
writing headlines.
Wrong: Delays and confusion bug
Asiad
Correct: Delays, confusion bug
Asiad
Lacson, Trillanes no show at SONA
Tips in headline writing
48. 11. Use semicolon to separate
sentences.
Gina Lopez heads Pasig body;
Noy swears in 35 other execs
12. Use the punctuation marks
(especially the exclamation point)
sparingly.
Tips in headline writing
49. 13. Use single quotes (‘) in headlines
instead of double quotes (“).
14. Always give the source of a quote.
Quotation marks are not needed, a
dash or a colon will serve the
purpose.
Crackdown on errant bus firms – Enrile
Enrile: Crackdown on errant bus firms
Tips in headline writing
50. 15. Use the down-style – only the first
word and proper nouns are
capitalized, unless otherwise
indicated. This is more readable
because people are used to
reading sentences this way.
Ex. Faculty honors Nuñez
Tips in headline writing
52. Let US Try this:
Give me the rule violated in the headline
below:
DepEd Bago will conduct art
workshhop
Rule number:
Rule:
Correct:
53. Let US Try this:
Give me the rule violated in the headline
below:
DepEd Bago will conduct art
workshhop
Rule number: 7
Rule:Use infinitive for future
events.
Correct: DepEd Bago to
conduct art workshop
54. Let US Try this:
Give me the rule violated in the headline
below:
Lopez Grabs 2 Golds
Rule number:
Rule:
Correct:
55. Let US Try this:
Give me the rule violated in the headline
below:
Lopez Grabs 2 Golds
Rule number: 15
Rule: Use the downstyle.
Correct: Lopez grabs 2 golds
56. Activity # 4 HEADLINE WRITING
Give me the rule violated in the headline
below:
attends JS Prom
Rule number:
Rule:
Correct:
57. Quiz:
Give me the rule violated in the headline
below:
Reyes and Mirasol receive
top prize
Rule number:
Rule:
Correct:
58. Quiz:
Give me the rule violated in the headline
below:
Bago City hosts confab.
Rule number:
Rule:
Correct:
59. Quiz:
Give me the rule violated in the headline
below:
Drilon Issues Permit to
Workers
Rule number:
Rule:
Correct:
60. Quiz:
Give me the rule violated in the headline
below:
A grade 9 student wins essay
writing
Rule number: 9
Rule:Omit articles a, an and
the
Correct: Grade 9 student wins
essay writing
61. Quiz:
Give me the rule violated in the headline
below:
Reyes and Mirasol receive
top prize
Rule number:10
Rule:Use comma instead of
and.
Correct: Reyes, Mirasol
receive top prize
62. Quiz:
Give me the rule violated in the headline
below:
Bago City hosts confab.
Rule number: 8
Rule: Do not use period at the
end of the headline.
Correct: Bago City hosts
confab
63. Quiz:
Give me the rule violated in the headline
below:
Drilon Issues Permit to
Workers
Rule number: 15
Rule: Use the downstyle
Correct: Drilon issues permit
to workers
64. 16. Use only widely known
abbreviations.
Wrong: JEE to play Santa this
Christmas
Tips in headline writing
65. 17. Don’t use names unless the
person is well known, use
common nouns instead.
Wrong: Santos electrocuted
Correct: Carpenter electrocuted
Tips in headline writing
66. 18. Use specific terms instead of
generalities
Example: Trader killed
Better: Trader stabbed to death
Tips in headline writing
67. 19. Just report the facts; do not editorialize.
Wrong: Noy gives inspiring talks
(The word “inspiring” is just your opinion.)
20. Be positive. Don't use negatives in
headlines. They weaken not only the
headlines but also the stories.
Tips in headline writing
68. Try giving this lead a headline:
Education Secretary Armin Luistro yesterday said his
agency had not abandoned its development of “God-loving
learners” as he denied having been pressured by any group into
removing the phrase “God-loving” from the DepEd’s vision
statement.
Luistro: ‘DepEd developing God-loving learners’
DepEd hones God-loving learners, says Luistro
Luistro says, Deped is honing God-loving learners
69. The Catholic Church has denied
the sacrament of marriage to a
Quezon City councilor because
of his stance advocating birth
control.
Pro-birth control councilor
denied of marriage rites
70. Do’s in Writing Traditional
Heads
Make the head
answer as many
W’s as possible
Scribes win in
Presscon
(?)
Gulayan sa
Paaralan,
sinuportahan (?)
Cat’nes places 2nd
overall in reg’l confab
Gulayan sa Paaralan,
sinuportahan ng PTA
71. Do’s in Writing Traditional
Heads
Write numbers in figures or
spell them out
Eighty percent
of del Pilarians
approve CyberEd
(x)
80% of del Pilarians
approve CyberEd
9 golds up for
grabs in Division
Athletic Meet (x)
Nine golds up
for grabs in
Division Athletic
Meet
72. Do’s in Writing Traditional
Heads
Positive heads are
preferable to
negative ones.
Hog cholera not
in Bulacan (x)
ARMM polls,
hindi tuloy
Bulacan gov’t allays
hog cholera fear
ARMM polls,
ipinagpaliban
73. Do’s in Writing Traditional
Heads
Be specific.
Put a verb
expressed or
implied.
The Seminar on
English proficiency
(x)
Mentors join
seminar on
English
proficiency
(improve)
Mentors join seminar
on English proficiency
English Olympics
up in October
74. Do’s in Writing Traditional
Heads
Omit articles ( a, an, the).
Do not use all caps. The
trend is down style (
lower case except for first
word and proper nouns)
and flush left
THE ENROLMENT
DIPS (x)
The Kids to Receive
Measles, Polio, Rubella
shots (x)
Kids to receive measles,
polio, rubella shots
Enrolment dips
by 2.5 %
75. Do’s in Writing Traditional
Heads
The active verb is
preferable than the
passive, but when
the doer is not
prominent, use the
passive head .
Enrile wants new book
published only after death
Overseas job seekers
warned vs Web offers
76. Do’s in Writing Traditional
Heads
Use the
present tense
for past
stories; the
infinitive for
future stories.
Ukraine seeks to join
Nato to counter Russia
Ukraine to join Nato
to counter Russia
77. Don’t’s in Headline Writing
Avoid label, wooden
and mandatory
heads.
Avoid editorializing .
Journalism training (X)
Join Journalism training(X)
SPAs perk up skills
in division journalism training
Kind Principal bats for moral
values (X)
SPA training, a success (X)
78. Don’t’s in Headline Writing
Don’t end a line with a preposition, but don’t
confuse a hanging prep. with a two-word verb.
RP sweeps Asian titles in
Petron Asian Karting Open
RP sweeps Asian titles
in Petron Asian Karting Open
• Guest Speaker bats for
moral values
79. Don’t’s in Headline Writing
Don’t break off
words, verb
phrase,
preposition and
object
School Choir to per-
form in NAMCYA in
Nov. (x)
Choir to perform
in NAMCYA
in November
80. Don’t’s in Headline Writing
Don’t abbreviate
months/ days
unless figures
follow.
SG election slated
in October
SG election slated
on Oct. 31
81. Punctuating Headlines
Use a comma in place of the conjunction and.
In a two-line head, separate two independent clauses with a semi-
colon (;)
Palace apologizes for sorry state of MRT,
shuns ‘rush hour ride’ challenge
Ebola outbreak spreads to Senegal;
riots break out in Guinea
82. Punctuating Headlines
In using direct quotation
as head, use dash, colon,
and comma instead of
the traditional quotation
marks.
SC didn’t ask for e-court
funding–Palace
Luistro: DepEd developing
God-loving learners
No worries, says MILF
on Bangsamoro Law delay
MILF says, no worries
on Bangsamoro Law delay
83. Vocabulary Headline
What do the words in bold mean?
Farmers group
scores gov’t on
unemployment
Director Ramirez
keynotes Reg’l
Journalism confab
Transport groups buck
high oil price hike
Literary contests cap
Buwan ng Wika
Scribes in libel row
84. Vocabulary Headline
Replace the italicized words
with apt head lingo
Campaign against pornographic
literature going on
Drive vs smut on
Math winners announced
Math winners bared
85. Vocabulary Headline
Replace the italicized words
with apt head lingo
Campus writers will join
regional journalism conference
Scribes to join
reg’l presscon
86. Vocabulary Headline
Replace the italicized words
with apt head lingo
Principal approves
Student Gov’t election
Principal okays
Student Gov’t polls
87. Vocabulary Headline
Replace the italicized words
with apt head lingo
First year student wins first
place in poster making
contest
Freshman cops gold
in poster making tilt
88. Pagsulat ng Ulo ng Balita
Ano ang mali sa ss. na ulo ng balita? Iwasto.
Mag-aaral, kahanga-hangang nagwagi
REG’L SCHOOLS PRESSCON
Editor ng Malaya, nanguna sa pagsulat ng balita
Aklasan sa DAR, nalutas nagsipag-aklas, bumalik
Aklasan sa DAR, nalutas; manggagawa, bumalik
89. Mechanics of Headline Writing
A Technical Instruction or The Printer’s Directions
3-30 Arial Black-Inverted Pyramid
body text: Arial Narrow
Meaning:
The first number means that the headline will run across three columns
of the page.
The second number stands for the font size to be used.
AB (Arial Black) indicates the font type.
Inverted Pyramid is the headline pattern to be used.
The two lines below means that make a two-line headline.
Putin ready to invade Ukraine;
Kiev warns a war
91. Give the unit count of the
following headline
1 ½ 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 ½ 1 1 1 ½ 1 1 ½ 1 1 1 1 1 ½ 1 1 1
Pnoy urges Senate to hasten
1 ½ 1 ½ 1 ½ 1 1 1 1 1 1 ½ 1 1 1 1 1 1
PDAF scam probe = 44 ½ units
92. Give the unit count of the
following headline
Pnoy urges Senate to hasten PDAF
scam probe
93. Counting the Headline
1.All small letters except jilft and mw are counted as 1.
2. Small letters jilft are counted as ½.
3. Small letters m and w are counted as 1½.
4. All capital letters except MW are counted as 1½.
5. Capital letters M and W are counted as 2.
6. Capital letters J, I, L, F, T are counted as 1.
94. 8. All punctuation marks except the –?, $ and % are
counted as ½.
9. Dash, question mark, dollar and percent sign are
counted as 1.
10. All figures, except 1, and spaces are counted as 1.
11. Number 1 is counted as ½.
95. Putin ready to invade Ukraine;
Kiev warns a war (43 units)
Pnoy urges Senate to hasten
PDAF scam probe
(44 ½ units)
96. Headline Patterns
Crossline or barline – a single line of headline running
over two or more columns
Indonesian turns forest into ‘school of life’
Ombudsman, kulang sa abogado
Dropline – two or three lines of headline, usually of the
same length and are arranged diagonally
Dole Philippines donates
armchairs to Sarangani
97. Headline Patterns
Flush Left – two or more headlines are aligned at the left edge
of the column
Malacañang muling nagpaalala
sa OFWs sa pagdadala ng droga
PH cagers take Croatia
to overtime before losing
98. Headline Patterns
Hanging Indention – usually three or more lines of headline, the first set
flushed to both margins and the succeeding lines are indented several
spaces from the left margin, thus hanging as if from the first
Military ready to step in
if anti-gov’t protest
turn violent
Inverted Pyramid – two or more lines of headline with the first line flushed to
both margin and the succeeding lines getting shorter and centered
Pinoys escape massacre
in another UN camp
99. Headline Patterns
Flush Right – two or more lines of headline are aligned at the
right edge of the column
Ordinansa sa riding in tandem,
ipatutupad na sa Manila
Flushline or full line – consists of two or more lines of the same
length
FDA: Don’t buy
these eye drops
100. Other Kinds of Headline
1. Streamer – striking bold-faced head extending across
the top of the page
2. Umbrella – a streamer that is placed at the very top of
the page above the nameplate of the newspaper
3. Binder – a streamer at the top of an inside page
4. Boxed head – the headline is boxed either for
prominence of to avoid tombstoning
101. Other Kinds of Headline
5. Jump head (run-over head) – headline of a news story,
which is cut and continued on the inside page; it is
followed by the word from page – or the like
6. Subhead – a short title of a portion of news story to break
the monotony of gray text; set in boldface and occupies
more than half the column width
7. Tagline, kicker or teaser – a short single line placed
above the main head, may be of smaller type, underlined
and set flush left or centered
8. Hammer – if the tagline or kicker is bigger than the headline