4 tips for writing killer headlines—from Gawker

The websites owned by Gawker Media attract as many page views as The New York Times. Much of that success is thanks to their sexy headlines. Here’s how they do it.

Web readers are crunched for time, and they’re bombarded with content. If your headline is too vague or too dull, they’re off to another site or task like/that.

The same goes for journalists reading your press releases. You might have the most amazing pitch for a product or service, but if the headline is lousy, most reporters won’t bother to read about it.

So, if you want to write better headlines, why not learn from some of the best—the staff at Gawker media.

The websites owned and operated by Gawker Media—which include Gizmodo, Deadspin, Jezebel, and Gawker—attract 32 million unique visitors a month (on par with The New York Times and double that of The Washington Post), according to a report in The Atlantic.

In that Atlantic report, contributor James Fallows explores the future of journalism, and, in an unlikely twist, the former Carter speechwriter points to Gawker as the way forward.

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