Adventures in Farm Bill Headline Writing
Jun 21, 2012
The Senate just passed the 2012 farm bill, a thousand-page behemoth that has captured the attention of a lot of different audiences. Close behind are the journalists, vying for a share of the discussion. The first and best way they do this is through headline writing.
A good headline manages expectations, and recent farm bill stories are no different. A good headline will let you know if the following article is straightforward analysis, or a scathing op-ed, or if it is meant to appeal to a particular special interest group.
I did a search for "farm bill" in Google News. Here is a sampling of the resulting headlines, from the good to the bad to the head-scratchers.
