A headline can make or break a news story. The ultimate goal is to grab a reader’s attention – the catchier and more thought provoking the better – but, it is still essential that the headline embodies the underlying theme of the story.
A good example of this is the headline of a recent article published in The Wall Street Journal. The headline, “Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior,” alone has caused a great deal of controversy.
The article, written by Amy Chua, is an excerpt from her new book, “Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother.” It discusses the differences between Chinese and Western parenting styles, and suggests that Chinese mothers raise highly intelligent children because they refuse to give up and, culturally, are not concerned with their children’s self-esteem.
You can imagine the reaction from reader’s scanning that morning’s headlines. The Seattle Times wrote an article a week later reporting that the article in The Wall Street Journal had generated more than 5,000 comments, and the author had received death threats. The headline got people reading, but some felt mislead. Chua told the Seattle Times, “If she has one regret, she said, it is that the Journal excerpt, and particularly the headline, did not reflect the full arc of her story.”
Keep in mind, journalists do not usually choose their own headlines. Journalists can suggest a headline, but it is ultimately up to the copy editor to make that decision at most news organizations.
Media has the ability to shape perceptions and headlines play an important role. A good headline should be active, short, simple and relate to the underlying theme. The Wall Street Journal headline was provocative, but caused a great deal of anger. It is a fine line. With the growth in available content, headlines carry an unprecedented burden. You have seconds to capture someone’s attention and stand out from the pack. Here are some good provocative headlines to strive for:
- “Budweiser: The Beer of Climate Change Deniers?” This headline recently appeared in The Huffington Post for an article that talks about Anheuser-Busch and its platform of environmental stewardship. The clever headline is interesting, yet stays true to the theme of the article.
- “Twitter’s Suitors Talk in Billions.” This headline recently appeared on the Wall Street Journal’s website and it is easy to gauge what the article will be about without clicking through to the full text. A clever and unusual word like “suitor” used to describe a financial backer catches the reader’s eye.
- “Mac App Store: Developer Godsend or Evil Empire?” This provocative headline recently appeared in The Register. Communiqué PR coordinated an interview with the journalist on behalf of our client, the Omni Group, who was included in the article. The headline is compelling and reflected both sides of popular thought surrounding the soon-to-be-released App Store. This article was re-tweeted and reposted all over the Web, in large part because of the headline.
At Communiqué PR, when we are preparing to conduct media outreach on behalf of our clients, we first envision the headlines we would like to achieve and think through the compelling elements the journalist will need in order to craft the story and make them readily available. This is an effective visualization technique that makes sure the most compelling information rises to the top. Because in a world flooded with information, a five word headline can have a huge impact.