Copyreading and
Headline Writing:
Guidelines and
Explanations
Introduction
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The art of arranging, correcting,
and selecting the quality and type of
news that are within acceptable
journalistic standards in terms of style
and editorial policy.
Specialist in this field is called
copyreader/ copyeditor.
Copyreading, editing, correcting
are synonymous terms.
Copyreading gives the article the
final touch before it goes to the
printer.
Responsibilities of Copyreader:
edits errors on grammar
(spelling, tenses, etc.)
➢ edits errors of fact (accuracy
check)
➢ checked the structure of the
news
➢ judges news value (grading of
news)
➢ writes the headline
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QUALITIES of a GOOD COPYREADER
✓ Must possess certain qualities not everybody in
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the staff may have.
Must have a good command of the language.
Must have at his fingertips a good working
knowledge on the rules of grammar.
Must have a wide vocabulary.
Must be well-read and must have a storage of
general and current information.
Must be well-aware of libel news.
Procedures in Copyreading
Read the whole article
first to determine what
kind of story it is.
1.
Procedures in Copyreading
2. Having determined the
type of story, read the story
again. This time, determine
the lead paragraph.
Procedures in Copyreading
3. Read the story again and
mark all paragraph beginnings.
Then
correct
errors
in
grammar,
spelling,
punctuations and style using
copyreading symbols.
Procedures in Copyreading
4. Improve the organization
of the story. Make sure the
lead features the lead fact.
Procedures in Copyreading
5. Go over the whole
story again. Remove all
unnecessary
and
irrelevant materials.
Procedures in Copyreading
6. Check the length of
the story, then prepare
the clean copy.
6.
Key Tasks
Ensure Proper Formatting:
• Indent paragraphs.
• Ensure proper spacing and alignment.
2. Review the Lead Paragraph:
• Confirm that it features the lead fact and
provides a strong introduction.
3. Ensure Flow and Readability:
• Reread the story to check if transitions
between paragraphs are smooth and logical.
4. Final Review:
• Read the story as a whole once more to
ensure there are no remaining errors,
redundancies, or inconsistencies.
1.
Capitalization:
•Always check for proper nouns (names of
people, places, organizations, titles) and capitalize
them. Example: Engr. Peter Garcia or Engineer
Garcia.
•Use downstyle capitalization for non-proper
nouns, unless part of a title or headline directive.
Grammar and Spelling
•Ensure correct subject-verb agreement,
proper tense usage, and correct
prepositions.
•Proofread for spelling errors, including
homophones.
When to use words or figures?
➢
Zero to nine should be spelled out except for:
Dates: January 9, 2022
Address: 1 Ilang-ilang St.
Age: Juan Dela Cruz, 7, from Balanga City
Scores: Ginebra clinched a quarterfinal spot
after rising to 6-5.
Time: 9 am
➢ 10 and above-use figures except when used as the
first word in the sentence.
Example: Ten people died in a plane crash.
Abbreviations
•Abbreviate commonly recognized terms like St. (Street),
Gov. (Governor), but write the full form if clarity is
needed. Examples: “123 Looban St.” or “Looban Street”
•Ensure abbreviations are widely understood. If not, spell
them out on the first mention with the abbreviation in
parentheses (e.g., Department of Education (DepEd)).
Acronyms
•Use acronyms sparingly and ensure they are widely
known (e.g., UNESCO, DepEd). Avoid obscure
acronyms.
•Write out the full term on the first reference, followed by
the acronym in parentheses, unless the acronym is
universally recognized.
Lead
•Avoid starting the lead with the name of a lesser-known
person. Focus on the event, action, or context.
•Answer the basic questions: Who? What? Where?
When? Why? How?
•Keep it concise, no more than 25-30 words for a straight
news lead.
Paragraphs
•Indent the first sentence of every paragraph.
•Ideally, limit one sentence per paragraph for
news stories, as it improves readability.
Jumble phrases or words in a sentence
•Watch out for misplaced modifiers or jumbled
sentence structures. Ensure sentences are
logical and easy to follow.
•Rearrange words or phrases to maintain clarity
and coherence.
Jumble phrases or words in a sentence
Original (Jumbled Sentence):
"She a beautiful painting created of the
sunset in the studio.“
Revised (Clear and Logical):
"She created a beautiful painting of the
sunset in the studio."
Jumble phrases or words in a sentence
Original (Jumbled Sentence):
"Quickly the children ran to the park
after finishing their homework.“
Revised (Clear and Logical):
"After finishing their homework, the
children quickly ran to the park."
Inverted Pyramid Structure:
•
Organize the article with the most
critical information at the top
(important to least important). End with
a minor yet significant detail or
summary to maintain relevance.
Avoid Editorializing:
•
•
Remove unnecessary adjectives
unless they add value to the
context.
Be objective and focus on facts.
Avoid
inserting
opinions
or
assumptions.
Redundancies (Verbal Deadwood):
•
Eliminate repetitive phrases or
unnecessary words.
Fix this:
•
She went to the market to buy
groceries.
Simplicity:
•
Use short, simple sentences
to make the news accessible
and easy to read.
Headline
Writing
Headline Writing
•
•
•
An assemblage of words written in bigger,
bolder letters than the usual page text at the
beginning of the news, also known as the
head, but not a title.
It gives the summary of the news.
Good headlines capture the readers’
attention and make them want to explore
the story. An assemblage of words written in
bigger, bolder letters than the usual page
text at the beginning of the news, also
known as the head, but not a title.
QUALITIES
OF
HEADLINE
A
GOOD
1. It must contain the most important
fact of the story. It is not the place
for details.
2. It must be constructed as to catch
the reader’s attention and make him
read the story.
3. Size and length of the headline must
be proportional to the length of the
story and its importance.
QUALITIES
OF
HEADLINE
A
GOOD
4. The headline makes use of special
vocabulary which is not suitable for
ordinary communication situations.
5. No hanging prepositions
6. No repetition of word.
7. Uses familiar abbreviations only
8. No typographical errors/ grammar
errors
9. No editorializing
10. Not labels
THE ACTIVE VOICE IN HEADLINE
➢The verb is said to be in the active voice when
the subject is the doer of the action.
➢The ACTIVE Voice is preferred over the PASSIVE
voice because it is more vigorous; however, the
PASSIVE voice must be used when the action is
more significant than the doer of the action.
ACTIVE HEADLINES
Pasig City eyes vaxxing all minors 12-17 this month
Vaccine makers apply for booster immunization
Caloocan to review dress code over ‘short shorts’
5 Abu Sayyaf bandits surrender in Sulu
DOLE to resume face to face job fair
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Examples of Active Voice Headlines
1. President Signs Landmark Climate Bill
2. Local Artist Wins National Award
3. Firefighters Rescue Family from Burning Home
4. Scientists Discover Cure for Rare Disease
5. Community Raises $50,000 for Charity
Examples of Passive Voice Headlines
1. Landmark Climate Bill Signed by President
2. National Award Won by Local Artist
3. Family Rescued from Burning Home by Firefighters
4. Cure for Rare Disease Discovered by Scientists
5. $50,000 Raised for Charity by Community
ACTIVE Headlines: Write the correct form of the verb in
the following headlines. Observe agreement between
subject and the verb.
1. CA (deny) _________ Leviste’s petition for bail
2. World pirate attacks (soar)________ in first quarter
3. Duterte (hail) _________Syria as RP ‘strategic partner
4. Shell, Petron (raise) ___________gas prices
5. SC (uphold) __________ oil deregulation law
6. DSWD (launch) ____________ ‘war’ vs child abuse
7. Local bets (win) ____________in science fair
8. Faculty Club (honor) ______________ achievers
9. Rotary Club (donate)_______________computers
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10. Santos (cop) __________4 National awards
11. Researcher (receive) ______________ US grant
12. Local cadets (spearhead) ____________ projects
13. Barangay (launch) ___________livelihood projects
14. Go (vow) _______ to continue helping Pinoys in crisis
15. Isko (will assert) ___________ claim over Sabah
16. Duterte (will sign) ____________ Electrification EO
17. SDO Pampanga (will conduct) ________ Journ Training
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The Passive Headline
➢ A passive voice headline tells what happened,
but hides the who.
➢ What happened is more important than the
doer.We usually use passive headline in
accident story.
➢ The verb here is in the past participle ( d, ed,
en or changed)
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Passive Headlines
Centino named Armed Forces chief of staff
Vaccination required for onsite workers
Rookie cop nabbed for killing of student
2 died, 5 injured in grenade blast
P740K worth of marijuana destroyed
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Write the correct form of the verb in the following headlines
1. Feeding program (launch) __________
2. Two jail guards caught gambling (fire) _________
3. Resto owner (sue) ___________
4. Governor (probe) __________ for P72M deficit
5. Jueteng protectors in CL (identify) _____________
6. Boy scout master (kill) __________ in camp site
7. Shanties in Quiapo (demolish)______________
8. Absentees (warn) ___________ of expulsion
9. Parents of honor studes (cite) _____________
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RULES IN WRITING HEADLINES
1. The headline must have a verb and it
must be in the present tense.
Wrong: Santos topped editorial tilt
Correct: Santos tops editorial tilt
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RULES IN WRITING HEADLINES
2. Minimize punctuation marks. Use single quotation
marks. Use a comma in place of “and”and a semicolon to
separate sentences.
Wrong: Rolling stores to sell rice and groceries
Correct: Rolling stores to sell rice, groceries
Mali: 20k campaign tarpaulins at poster binaklas
Tama: 20k campaign tarpaulins, poster binaklas
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RULES IN WRITING HEADLINES
3. Do not use period.
Wrong: PH orders mandatory evacuation of
Filipinos in Ukraine.
Correct: PH orders mandatory evacuation of
Filipinos in Ukraine
4. Don’t use the articles- a, an, the
Wrong: A fire hits Tondo squatters’ area
Correct: Fire hits Tondo squatters’ area
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RULES IN WRITING HEADLINES
5. Don’t use names unless the person is well-known.
Wrong: Simon electrocuted
Correct: Electrician electrocuted
6. Use the infinitive for future events.
Wrong: City Hall will push anti-squatting drive
Correct: City Hall to push anti-squatting drive
7. Use specific terms instead of generalities
Wrong: School official gets scholarship
Correct: Principal gets US scholarship
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S-V-DO format
Subject-verb-direct object
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CEBU CITY, Philippines — Senator Manny Pacquiao criticized
traditional politicians or “trapos” for their changing political
stands.
Subject: Senator Manny Pacquiao
Verb: criticized
Direct object: traditional politicians or “trapos”
Headline:
Pacquiao hits trapos over political changes
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MANILA, Philippines — The Caloocan City government will
review its dress code ordinance after a woman complained
of being accosted for wearing “short shorts,” Mayor Oscar
Malapitan said yesterday.
Subject: Caloocan City government
Verb: will review
Direct object: dress code ordinance
Headline:
Caloocan govt to review dress code ordinance
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The Department of Health (DOH) reminded the public that
the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues to be a threat
despite the easing of restrictions and the downward trend
of cases in the country.
Subject: Department of Health (DOH)
Verb: reminded
Direct object: public-the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues to be a
threat
Headline:
DOH reminds public; COVID-19 still a threat
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DUMAGUETE CITY, Philippines — The biggest
problem facing the country today is government
itself, Sen. Panfilo Lacson said yesterday.
Headline:
'The biggest problem facing the country
today is government itself' -Lacson
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CAMP VICENTE LIM, Laguna, Philippines — A
businesswoman was killed when suspected gang
members fired shots in the air in Dasmariñas,
Cavite, authorities said yesterday.
Headline:
Trader killed in indiscriminate firing
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MANILA, Philippines — Up to 1,686 kilos of fossilized
giant clams with an estimated market value of P25.29
million were confiscated in Oslob, Cebu on Friday.
Headline:
P25 million giant clams seized in Cebu
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PRINTER’S
DIRECTION
The corresponding unit counts are given as
follows:
➢
➢
➢
➢
½ unit – j, i, l, f, t, and all punctuation marks
except the em dash (–) and the question
mark;
1 unit – the question mark, space, capital,
J,I,L,T,F, all lower case letters except
j,i,l,t,f,m,w
1 ½ units – the em dash (–), lower case m
and w, all capital letters except M and W and
JILFT
2 units – capital M, W
COLUMN
LINES
FONT SIZE
EMS
1
3-4
18-22
12
2
1-2
24-28
25
3
1
30-38
38
4
1
40-71
51
5
1
72…
64
Headline Capitalization Style
•Downstyle:
Torch leads the competition
•All Caps:
TORCH LEADS THE COMPETITION
•Cap and Lower Case or CLC:
Torch Leads the Competition
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Headline Style
•Flush Left:
All lines of the headline are aligned to the left margin.
•Flush Right:
All lines of the headline are aligned to the right margin.
One-Line Headline
•A single, concise line of text.
•Example:
City Marathon Breaks Records
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column ̵ font size ̵ font style ̵ unit count
Line ̵ Headline Capitalization Style ̵ Headline Style
SLUG LINE
In copyreading, a slug line is a
short, descriptive label used by
editors
to
summarize
or
categorize a news story. It helps
journalists and editors quickly
identify and track stories during
editing and publishing.
News
EU reaffirms
JLP
01-11-24
p.3