A reader’s guide to words of art used by reporters and editors

Commuters read copies of the Daily Nation in Nyeri Town on August 14, 2017. The intro summarises the story or points out the most important or interesting aspect of the story. PHOTO | JOSEPH KANYI | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • Copyediting is a critical process in which errors of fact, flow, spelling, grammar and style are corrected.
  • When the edited story is published, it carries a headline — what in other writings is called a title or heading — placed above it.

When readers complain about what has been reported, I sometimes find it necessary to ask them to pinpoint exactly what is offending them.

I ask them questions such as: “When you say ‘caption’, are you referring to the headline or what is printed below the picture? Sometimes I find we are not speaking the same language.”

In journalism, there are words peculiar to the profession which may be unclear or baffling to an outsider.

They are called words of art. Every profession, such as law, medicine or engineering, has its own words of art.

In law, for example, words such as consideration, performance and sandpapering have meanings different from their normal use.

STORIES
There are numerous words of art used by print and electronic journalists.

I am going to mention those used by print journalists.

I shall also confine myself to seven main and commonly encountered words of art — story, copy, headline, byline, intro, lead and agenda-setting.

In print journalism, journalists and editors refer to what they write and edit as stories.

The stories are not fiction or the kind our grandmothers told us.

However, I must admit, we now have a phenomenon called fake stories (news) and some stories are contested over their accuracy.

EDITING
The text of a reporter’s story is called copy — which has nothing to do with being unoriginal.

Copy is edited by a sub-editor, also known as copy editor.

Copy-editing is a critical process in which errors of fact, flow, spelling, grammar and style are corrected.

Copy editors are the unsung heroes of the newsroom (place where reporters and editors work).

A veteran editor has aptly described a copy editor as “an anonymous drudge who attempts, against great odds, to correct the many faults of writers before publication”.

HEADLINE
When the edited story is published, it carries a headline — what in other writings is called a title or heading — placed above it.

The headline is written not by the reporter but by the copy editor.

A good headline summarises or reflects the essence of the story and grabs the attention of the reader.

However, headlines are a source of contestation regarding their accuracy or propriety.

A biased or sensational headline, for example, can influence a reader’s perception of a story.

If the headline runs across the entire page, it’s called a banner.

A headline may also have a deck — a second part that further summarises the story.

INTRO
The byline comes next in the layout (the arrangement of the story on a page).

The byline tells the reader who has written the story — which is important as stories can carry the imprint of their creators.

The first paragraph of a story is called the intro or the lead. The rest of the story is called the body.

It may have sub-heads — smaller one-line headlines that divide up the text for easier reading.

The intro summarises the story or points out the most important or interesting aspect of the story.

It is written to attract the attention of the reader.

SPLASH

The first sentence, or first few words, of a story’s intro set in a font (typeface) size larger than the body text of the story, is called the kicker.

If a story is displayed at the top of front page, it’s called the lead or leading story.

It’s also called a splash (The story is splashed across the front page). This is the story the editor thinks is the most important or interesting for the day.

Ranking of stories is also done for the inside pages.

It’s because of this selection and ranking of news that newspapers are said to set the public agenda — what people are going to talk about.

AGENDA-SETTING

They are also said to be gatekeepers — they decide what gets in and what is kept out.

They filter and shape the news. They tell readers what issues are more important than others.

As a final thought, let me add that agenda-setting and gatekeeping give rise to many of the complaints and contestations that I receive.

Send your complaints to [email protected]. Call or text 0721 989 264