Online Papers Streamline Reading

Studying front pages of the New York Times and Baltimore Sun online, I notice several examples of summary leads and short reports. In fact, many more than a traditional printed paper. I am surprised I never noticed before that the online format lends itself to a customized read. Unfortunately, this is sometimes accompanied by a saturated layout.

Normally, a printed paper must chose a few headlines for its front page, and for each headline, a chunk of that story is represented. Then the reader is forced to flip through the pages to find the rest of the story. I’ve heard that maybe only 20% of readers make this jump.

Computer monitors are a different size and ratio than printed newspapers, so the online versions alter the traditional layout. Digital papers cram as many headlines as possible onto the screen, because the rest of the story is just a click away. Then the reader can view as much or as little as he or she wants. Additionally, related links offer even more information on the reader’s chosen subject. Though online papers may be accused of information overload, they offer a customized reading experience (who said newspapers were dead?).

One example of this new experience is in the Baltimore Sun’s online front page. The combination of an eight-word headline and a 24-word summary lead alerted the public to a shooting this morning. By definition, a lead summarizes the main interesting or important points of a story in 30 words or less. It is a straightforward declarative sentence containing a subject, verb and object, in that order. This lead about the shooting is a perfect example. Though it gives the most important information, its clickable headline offers a 234-word short report with a picture, links to maps, etc. Typically, a short report will contain one to three sentences using action verbs, but this one is a little longer.

Similarly, a short report on the front page may entice the reader to view an in-depth story. For instance, a short report entitled “Rescue, cleanup in Texas,” with no byline appeared on the Baltimore Sun’s digital front page. The story offers only 74 words, but when the reader clicks the headline, he or she is directed to a longer story entitled, “Nearly 2,000 brought to safety in Texas after Ike,” written by Christopher Sherman of the Associated Press.