Maybe this is something we can break out at a convention...
Headline vs. Tease
There is a big difference, but how do you walk the line between the two? Which is better for which situation? And how do write each?
I know I can't be the only one who wants tips on how to write better teases...let's hear some ideas.

A headline story is just that...a story, albeit a very brief one. It should have a beginning and an end.

A tease should not be a complete story...it should, well, TEASE an upcoming story.

ss

I agree with Steve. We write both every day, and in their place, they work out very well for us.

This could help the TV people just as much as the radio people commenting here. I've lost track of the times I'm teasing the same story over and over again.. between the six shows I do in 3 days.

And, I'd be interested to hear comments regarding how consultants (yes, I said the word) view teases in different markets. They say we're too careful here. I'd be interested in something like this from a tv standpoint.

I'd say in casual day-to-day newsroom talk, when people say "headlines" they really mean "teases". But many producers (yes, myself included once upon a time) will sometimes write teases AS headlines.

The problem is, a good tease goes somewhat against the better angels of our journalistic nature-- to write a good tease, you have to make the conscious decision to leave out information. We as broadcast writers tend to want to put everything we can in a story.

Jim Gee
News Director, WCIA-TV

And what's frustrating to me, Jim -- as a television news viewer -- are "teases" that are misleading, deceptive and sometimes outright false. As a journalist, I cringe when I see them because they could cause news consumers to mistrust us even more than they already do.

Hopefully, discussions like this one -- and articles like that written by Ken Keller in December's TuneIn -- can help TV writers and producers improve their tease writing abilities.

I agree, Bill. Too often, the tease promises more than the story can deliver.

H

So let's brig this full circle...

Give an example of a good tease or a bad one...
And what about teases/questions...I find far too many people using those.

Ben