The Evolution Of The Headline - From Print To Patterns And Virality (An Overview Of Research In English And Bulgarian)
The Evolution Of The Headline - From Print To Patterns And Virality (An Overview Of Research In English And Bulgarian)

Summary/Abstract: The present article deals with the differences between headlines in the media of print and the qualitatively new phenomenon that is the web or online headline. The article begins with an overview of the discussion of the nature of print headlines in both English-language and Bulgarian-language literature and uses this as a platform for introducing the discussion concerning the evolutionary aspect of headlines in the so-called “Digital Era”. The study touches upon the role of the World Wide Web as a medium and its influence on user behavior patterns and, in turn, the effect these have on the web headline as such. The specific guidelines introduced by leading researchers in the field of writing for the web are also discussed, as well as their proposed classifications and typologies of headlines online. In this relation the paper discusses the specific models for creating successful headlines online by applying a particular set of patterns, each of which consists of a constant underlying structure and a set of empty slots which allow for customization and variation in each new headline. The use of such repetitive patterns for generating web headlines is also considered for its contributions to linguistic efficiency and the resulting improvement of online user experience. In addition, the article offers a discussion of recent findings concerning the specific development known as “virality” and more specifically – the so-called “viral headlines“ and their specific features.

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