Headlines

During Monday night's class, we were shown the website www.newseum.org. This site has many treasures, but one of the most convenient features of this website is the Today's Front Pages section. This feature has virtually every national newspaper's front page available for browsing. I wanted to take some time and see if some paper's headlines are appropriate according to the guidelines in our textbook.

Sunday, Aug. 10, 2008:
The Birmingham News, Birmingham, AL
The main, centered story is weak because there is no (clear) headline that I can see for it. The one I can see does not attract my interest. Evidently the story is about a former football player who is now a motivational speaker.

The Fresno Bee, Fresno, CA
I really like the overall layout of the Bee. The front page features a large, underwater photo of swimmer Michael Phelps. The headline is "Golden Opportunity", with the word golden in gold print. It's a bit of a pun headline, but it is catchy and has a good photo to back it up.

Pioneer Press, St. Paul, MN
One of my favorite papers from when I lived in Minnesota, the Pioneer Press delivers on today's headline. "Violence in Beijing, sorrow in Minnesota". There is a secondary headline of "Assailant stabs and kills Bachman's CEO and wounds his wife". There is a clear subject in the headline. It is in bold, large print and it attracts attention. The verbs are clear and active. I found myself very interested in this story and I even read half of the story on the front page before I turned away.

The Fayetteville Observer, Fayetteville, N.C.
I like the headline on the front page lead story because it's all in caps and in very large print. It immediately attracts attention and gives a clear indication of what the story is about. Additionally, the photograph on the front page is apparently a satellite map of Interstate 95. The map itself points out where fatal accidents were located on I-95.