The media is the same as every sector – it has its own special language – terms which make perfect sense to those in the know & mystifying to those on the outside.
Here is a selection of the most common journalistic jargon, which may be helpful for those working in PR and communications.
Article: a news story or feature
Breaking: a live & unfolding news story
Broadsheet: an up-market newspaper, formerly large in size, now often the same size as a tabloid. Includes the Guardian, the Telegraph and the Times
Byline: the name of the writer of a story on a piece
Chequebook journalism: paying to acquire the rights to stories or interviews, typically from celebrities
Churnalism: a derogatory term for journalism which is largely based on copying and pasting press releases
Circulation: the average number of copies of a newspaper or magazine edition published and sold
Colour piece: a descriptive, adjective-heavy feature
Column: either an opinion-heavy article, often a regular report by a senior journalist, or a vertical line of text in a newspaper or magazine
Contacts book: an address book containing the details of a journalist’s contacts, often now stored online
Copy: the words that make up a written story
Correspondent: a reporter specialising in a certain area, either a place or topic
Deadline: the time by which a journalist has to submit their copy
Doorstep: an attempt to interview someone with no prior warning (not necessarily on their doorstep)
Editor: typically the most senior journalist in a newsroom, responsible for the editorial direction of the publication. Sections of the publication will have their own section editors (news editor, sports editor etc)
Embargo: An agreement not to publicise information from a press release before a certain time and date
Exclusive: A story which is being reported for the first time, originated and reported by just one media outlet
Feature: A lengthy story, with more detail, analysis and background than a news story
Flamming/Hamming up: making a story seem more exciting, dramatic or urgent than it is
File: To submit a story to an editor
Freelance: A self-employed journalist
Headline: the heading at the top of a news or feature story, designed to entice the reader
Investigation: an off-diary story investigated over a period of time, often based on background or off-the-record interviews or undercover work
Lead times: the time between the journalist’s deadline and publication, which varies depending on the frequency of publication
Lobby: a group of approved political journalists who have special access to Parliament, have regular conferences with government spokespeople
Mid-market: tabloid newspapers that are not “red-tops” – generally the Daily Mail and Daily Express
News agenda: a selection of stories which are current and are relevant to a particular media outlet
Newsdesk: in large newsrooms, this is the area occupied by senior journalists (news editors and assistant news editors): in smaller newsrooms, this can be an umbrella term for the entire news team
Newsworthy: Stories judged to be of sufficient interest for coverage by an outlet
NIB: AKA News in Brief – the short snippets of news found in the right-hand column on a page – A short news article typically summed up in one paragraph for a newspaper
Off-diary story: a news report, often an exclusive, that has not been prompted by scheduled events
Off the record: Information given to a journalist by a source which they don’t want to be attributed to them
Op Ed: A newspaper column in which the writer normally expresses strong opinions
Page lead: The longest and most prominent story on a newspaper page
Peg/hook: The reason for running a story at a particular time – whether related to the season, month, time of year or scheduled events
Profile: a feature focused on a noteworthy individual, often based on an interview
Quote: words written or said by a source on the record
Red-top: tabloid newspapers traditionally with mastheads set on a red background, including The Sun, Daily Mirror and Daily Star
Reporter: a journalist who gathers news and ideas, conducts interviews and writes or presents stories to readers or viewers
Scoop: An exclusive story
Silly season: periods in which news cycles are slow, typically around Christmas and between July and August
Splash: The front page story on a newspaper
Spike: A story which has been dropped
Stock picture: a generic picture used to illustrate a particular story or issue, usually featuring non-recognisable people or models
Tabloid: Traditionally, a name for newspapers smaller newspapers, including the Sun, Mirror, Mail and Express, with more popular appeal than the broadsheets
Top line: The one-line summary of the most important element of a story – what will become the headline and introduction
These are our most common journalistic jargon. Have we missed any? Are there any you have heard which you’d like us to explain?
Read more: why you should avoid jargon in media interviews
Rough House runs a selection of bespoke training courses which can give you an insight into how the media works and media relations. Contact us for more information on 020 8332 6200 or info@roughhouse.co.uk.
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