Explaining Today's Papers
Readers have requested explanations of some of the terms used in
Slate's "Today's Papers" column. Here is a brief
glossary.
Above-the-fold : On the top half of the front page (therefore visible
even before the newspaper is unfolded). Signifies one of the most important
stories of the day, according to that paper's editors.
Evergreen : An article that could run at any time. There are two types
of evergreens: 1) an article without a direct tie-in to the day's news (e.g.,
"Traffic on the Rise in Metro Area"); and 2) a story that recurs regularly
(e.g., "Elderly Threatened by Record Heat").
Front (as a verb): To place a story on the front page. The five
national newspapers often reach different decisions on which stories to front
on any given day. (See also, above-the-fold .)
Jump (verb or noun): For a story that begins on one (usually the
front) page, to continue on another page. Or the place in the story where it
breaks between pages. Or the entire part of the story after the first page.
Because studies consistently show that few readers follow an article beyond the
jump, many papers attempt to lay out the crucial elements of the story before
the jump. ( USA Today is the most extreme case, with front page news
stories that almost never jump). Thus, the organization of facts around the
jump can often reveal a paper's slant on a story.
Lead : The news story deemed most important by the newspaper. In most
papers, the lead appears on the front page at the top of the right-hand column.
The New York Times is the strictest about this rule, while USA
Today --which often runs a feature story across the top of the front
page--varies the most from this standard. On occasion, the Washington
Post and Los Angeles Times will displace the lead with a feature
story--usually one with an eye-grabbing visual. In these cases, the lead will
almost always be the next story down in the right-hand column. The Wall
Street Journal has not adopted these conventions for leads. Instead, the
paper usually fronts feature stories and an extensive, two-column news
summary.
(Note: The opening sentence or paragraph of a news story is also known as
the lead, but usually spelled "lede" to avoid confusion.)
Off-lead : The second most important news story of the day. The
off-lead appears either in the top left corner, or directly below the lead on
the right.
Op-Ed: The page in a newspaper where opinion pieces not
written by the paper's editorial board appear. It originally stood for
"opposite the editorial page." It also refers to the individual articles on the
op-ed page (e.g., "Henry Kissinger's New York Times op-ed on the nuclear
test ban treaty"). Some op-ed pieces are written by regularly syndicated
columnists, and others are submitted to the newspaper unsolicited.
Reefer : A brief front-page synopsis of a story that appears
inside the paper. USA Today's "Newsline" and the Wall Street
Journal's "What's News" are essentially multiple reefers. The New York
Times , Washington Post , and Los Angeles Times tend to
integrate reefers into their front-page layouts.
Slug (as a verb): To run under the headline of (e.g., "The
Chicago Tribune slugged the story, 'Teen births fall to record low' ").
The term originally referred to the pieces of lead which held the type in place
on printing presses.
Stuff (as a verb): To place a story inside the paper.
Slightly derogatory, usually implying that the story was underplayed. (e.g.,
"The New York Times and Los Angeles Times fronted the Waco
controversy, while USA Today stuffed the story").
Next question?
Explainer thanks Scott Shuger.
