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stranger
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stranger
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Hi Friends...
I have a very peculiar query. U all must have read the newspaper headings like "Lara smashes century..." or " Keyboards star Billy Preston dies ...".
I want to know the logic behind the use of present indefinite tense in the headings. For e.g. is Lara has already smashed a century the previous day then why do we get the heading as "Lara smashes a century...". Should it not be "Lara smashed a century..." instead.
Please explain in details to me.
Thanks in advance.
Tuhin
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old hand
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old hand
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Well, I think a one word answer might be 'brevity'. Another one is 'simplicity'.
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stranger
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stranger
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Hello belligerent youth...
Ur answer does not explain why there is a preference for "Lara smashes a century..." and not for "Lara smashed a century..."
Tuhin
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old hand
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old hand
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> Ur answer does not explain why there is a preference for "Lara smashes a century..." and not for "Lara smashed a century..."
The present simple tense is, in fact, generally shorter and is thus the established tense for newspaper headlines. The specific case you mention is an exception because of the irregular conjugation of 'to smash' in the 3rd person singular. No one suspends the established rule for such cases.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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Tuhin, if you really want to know, I think you should send a PM to Wow. She worked in the newspaper business for a long time, but she doesn't come here all that often any more. [sob e]
I have a guess--and that's all it is--that it is a psychological ploy to emphasize that news is, after all, supposed to be new...?
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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> psychological ploy to emphasize
that would get my vote.
formerly known as etaoin...
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Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
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I am not sure what "Lara smashes a century" even means. Are we talking about vandalizing a Buick?
The present tense is more immediate and slightly more exciting. The headline is meant to grab the reader's attention and maybe even sell a newspaper, so it is a bit of a sales gimmick. It does sound a bit more ho-hum to write "Lance Armstrong won seventh Tour de France" than to say it in the present tense. But the article itself is usually in the past tense. The article that accompanies the headline "Billy Preston dies" probably begins with the sentence "Billy preston died yesterday at...."
For some stories, the present tense is applicable because the event is actually ongoing. For example, if I were to write a news story about a sports player breaking a record in say, most consecutive games played, I might say "Joe Schmoe breaks record for consecutive games played." In this case, the ongoing effort of playing in consecutive games continues, and the record continues to change as the season progresses. The present tense conveys that a little bit better than the past tense, which seems to focus soley on the moment that the previous record was broken.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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Tense is not as simple as past, present, and future. It interacts with aspect and mood in complex ways. For example, there are uses of the present as a future:
a. I leave for France in three weeks.
b. The new Spiderman movie opens on Thursday.
Or using a kind of past future politeness:
c. I wanted to ask you a question.
Or this strange one:
d. Originally entries closed tomorrow, but they've decided to allow another week.
There's also a timeless use of the present:
e. I write books.
I'd say the use of a present as immediate past is used in newspaper headlines to give immediacy to the event. "X wins the game." is shorthand for "X just won the game afew minutes ago and we're reporting it to you already."
Ceci n'est pas un seing.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Hello Tuhin, Headlines must fit space- one column or two column or more, and the size of the headline further complicates the case and is counted in points, most letters being one, an l or i is 1/2 point and m is two points. The present tense is used in headlines as part of news "style." (see below) Each column has certain number of points it will accommodate in varying font sizes. I would presume - from past experience - that "Lara smashes century" would be on the Sports page and would refer to a person who scored over or under 100 in some sport. The lingo on sports pages is even more complicated than regular heds! (Heds are news speak for headlines - see how we shorten?) Now, I have given you a very slight indication what knowledge is required in order to write a headline so I am sorry but to honor your request to Please explain in details to me. would require too much time. I respectfully suggest you avail yourself of books on newspaper writing and editing at your local library, Or. Call your local newspaper and ask for the address or the closest Associated Press (AP) office- the AP publishes a Stylebook - that you can purchase for a reasonable price - that details the requirements of usage in newspaper for writing and for heds. Some papers (i.e. The New York Times) have non-AP stylebooks they have amassed and which are not generally available to the public. Hope this helps a bit Hi Jackie 
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Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
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Alex hit it on the proverbial head. In Journ school they taught us that the present tense is used, especially in radio broadcasting, to make the news items seem more current and immediate
It is true, however, as wow explains, that headlines are curtailed for want of space, and hence some sound strange or perplexing, eg:
Shag man in the lot
Data stolen on more military, Guard than first thought
Last edited by dalehileman; 06/07/06 03:22 PM.
dalehileman
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Wow! You made a liar out of me! I'm so glad!  
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addict
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addict
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Always thought it was just to sound more swanky and dynamic, as "It's happening now!!"  is supposed to be more exciting than "It already happened and by the time you read this, it will be all over."  How is it that "some newspapers" can be directly defined as a single one, especially a [politics] [politics] rag? More 451/1984?  But this subject should not escape without posting some funny ones that were really printed: - TYPHOON RIPS THROUGH CEMETERY; HUNDREDS DEAD - MAN STRUCK BY LIGHTNING FACES BATTERY CHARGE - NEW STUDY OF OBESITY LOOKS FOR LARGER TEST GROUP - IRAQI HEAD SEEKS ARMS - MINERS REFUSE TO WORK AFTER DEATH - BRITISH LEFT WAFFLES ON FALKLAND ISLANDS - WAR DIMS HOPE FOR PEACE - IF STRIKE ISN'T SETTLED QUICKLY, IT MAY LAST A WHILE - COLD WAVE LINKED TO TEMPERATURES - BANK DRIVE-IN WINDOW BLOCKED BY BOARD
Last edited by Aramis11; 06/07/06 06:28 PM.
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stranger
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Thank u all for ur wonderfully informative responses!
Tuhin
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