Journalists can spend a fair amount of time discussing and defending their work on Twitter. But there is one complaint that readers should know will p

The Writer of This Article Also Wrote This Headline and That’s Rare

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2021-06-14 20:00:06

Journalists can spend a fair amount of time discussing and defending their work on Twitter. But there is one complaint that readers should know will probably fall on deaf ears: headlines. Earlier this week Tom Nichols, a professor and author, shared on social media a piece he’d written for The Atlantic in February.

One of his followers responded: “This is a damn good analysis. Headline gives false hope, but I'd bet a buck Tom didn't write it.”

Another Twitter follower pointed to Nichols’ byline, implying it was he who in fact wrote the headline. Nichols responded to the back and forth, ending the debate, “I did not write the headline. Most writers don't.”

Headlines are important. They have the ability to draw readers into a piece that they otherwise might skip. They also have the ability to completely tank an article that is otherwise full of good information. How can you avoid reading a story with the headline “Underwear bandit caught, admits brief crime spree” or the infamous 1983 headline from the New York Post, “Headless body in topless bar”?

Headlines are the first thing news consumers see when searching for stories or columns to read. They are essential in trying to attract eyes on articles writers have spent hours—sometimes even days or months—working on.