Ed Talks: Writing Effective Headlines

By Charlie Meyerson

These days, we're all headline writers. Whether you're producing material for radio, television, print or online, you need a good headline to stand out from the crowd. As we're presented with a flood of information every day on a variety of platforms, what makes a headline work? We're not talking about clickbait. We're talking about headlines to engage audiences. The answer is more complex than you might think. Are you taking into account how many characters will fit into a tweet? Did you know many mobile devices severely truncate email subjects? Are you choosing the right kinds of words to intrigue a potential reader?

Headlines determine whether your reporting in any medium — text, audio, video — connects with an audience. In this edition of Ed Talks, Murrow Award-winning radio, newspaper and internet reporter Charlie Meyerson, VP/Editorial for Rivet Radio and principal at his consulting practice, Meyerson Strategy, shares tips for creating great headlines.