The Sleigh Stops on Capitol Hill

Assignment 1

In available British or American newspapers find examples of different types/designs of headlines: single-column, spreads, banners, kickers, multiple-deck headlines and subheads. Try to relate your examples with the significance of the news in each case.

Assignment 2

Analyze the following funny examples of real headlines from the Columbia journalism Review containing misprints, double meaning and grammatical goofs - cases when words turned against intended meaning.

1. Former man dies in California.

2. Terminal smog not lethal.

3. Giant panda gives birth to baby boy.

4. Neanderthal man barbecued.

5. Ceremony end careers of 38 seniors.

6. City may impose mandatory time for prostitution.

7. Indian ocean talks.

8. Reagan wins on budget but more lies ahead.

9. Lions to install officers in zoo.

10. Two Soviet ships collide, one dies.

11. Teachers strike annoying students.

12. Panda mating fails, veterinarian takes over.

13. Pope walks in quake area - 3,000 dead.

14. Bill to help poor facing early death.

15. Sharks stop search for span collapse victims.

16. Criminally insane bill passes.

17. Caribbean stability worries diplomats.

18. Complaints about NBA referees growing ugly.

19. Kicking baby considered to be healthy.

20. New housing for elderly not yet dead.

21. Wives kill most spouses in Chicago.

22. New Missouri U Chancellor expects little sex.

23. Man eating piranha mistakenly sold as pet fish.

24. Chester Morrill, 92, was fed secretary.

25. Deer Kill 130,000.

26. Chou remains cremated.

27. Iraqi head seeks arms.

Assignment 3

The headlines (a-j) contain special 'headline words' (see the complete list). Each 'headline word' has a more common equivalent in 1-25. Match 'headline words' with their common equivalents.

a) ARMS SWOOP: TWO HELD

b) TORIES BACK PITS AXE

c) PEACE TALKS HEAD FOR SPLIT

d) NUCLEAR SCARE RIDDLE

e) GO-AHEAD FOR SCHOOLS PROBE

f) PRINCESS TO RE-WED PUZZLE

g) PM HITS OUT IN JOBLESS ROW

h) DEATH TOLL RISES IN DISCO BLAZE

i) PRESIDENT OUSTED IN COUP DRAMA

j) SMOKING BAN STAYS OFFICIAL

1 disagreement
2 discussions..
3 raid....
4 confusing news.
5 approval.
6 revolution
7 prohibition.
8 the unemployed.
9 investigation
10 Conservatives.
11 coalmines
12 criticises
13 arrested
14 number killed
15 remove by force
16 mystery...
17 marry again
18 fire..
19 the Prime Minister
20 remains
21 public alarm
22 cuts..
23 dispute.
24 armaments.
25 with legal authority.

Assignment 4

In British or American newspapers find at least 10 headlines that make use of particularly expressive words. Try to find words that are especially appropriate for headlines because they are both brief and clear (such as ‘clash’, ‘deal’, ‘tough’, ‘split’, ‘quit’, ‘push’, ‘boost’, etc.).

Assignment 5

In British or American newspapers find at least 10 headlines that make use of different expressive means and stylistic devices (tropes, allusions, puns, quotations, idioms, similes, etc.). Comment on their function in a particular headline after skimming the article.

Assignment 6

Comment on the following headline from the point of view of the used stylistic devices. The first paragraphs of the article from the International Herald Tribune will help you.

The Sleigh Stops on Capitol Hill

WASHINGTON - Playing Santa Claus to Congress, two delivery workers cruised the corridors of the House office building this week, pushing oversized carts piled high with presents from lobbyists.

In the Senate office building next door, another messenger loaded with gourmet fruit baskets was hopping from office to office to drop them off.

So what is the thoughtful lobbyist giving to members of Congress this holiday season?

From Ralph Vinovich of the Tobacco Institute, it’s a hefty box of gourmet oranges and grapefruits for the Senate Republican cloakroom...

lobbyists - those who lobby Congress to try to achieve their aims

Assignment 7

A Financial Times article headlined ‘Asia’s newest tiger tries to ride a storm’ reports that the Philippines is working hard to avoid following Thailand into financial turmoil. It also mentions that the Philippines likes to see itself as Asia’s newest tiger. Identify expressive means used in the headline trying to connect it to the English readers’ cultural background.

Assignment 8

Interpret the following headline from the point of view of expressive means and stylistic devices. The gist of the article from ‘The St. Petersburg Times’ should be clear from several paragraphs given below.

U.S. Taxes Built Still-Sleeping ‘Giant’

VLADIVOSTOK, Far East - In a tiny village some 27 kilometres outside of town, down a small, potholed road off the main highway to the airport, rises what looks like a mirage: an American-style mega-supermarket with the logo ‘Giant’ attached to its facade in big red letters.

On closer inspection, though, the vision starts to fade. The green dot above the ‘i’ in Giant has rusty holes around the edges. Inside, sleek refrigerated display cases, checkout counters and shelving stand empty in a huge, dark, hangar-like space under warped ceiling tiles.

This is not a scene from after the apocalypse. These are U.S. taxpayer dollars, 9 million of them, at work.

logo - a small pattern or picture that is the sign of a particular organization

checkout counter - узел расчета в гастрономе

Assignment 9

Classify the following headlines according to their function using the classification mentioned above:

Ia - headlines introducing the topic,

Ib - headlines, summarizing the contents of the story,

II - headlines predominantly sensational, lacking explanatory function.

1. Svyazinvest Sale earns $1.97 Bln for state. (The St. Petersburg Times)

2. Blind ambition. (The St. Petersburg Times)

3. Moscow’s quick fix for 850^th. (The St. Petersburg Times)

4. Radioactive cement mutating Siberian town. (The St. Petersburg Times)

5. Disney house of the future included floating furniture. (USA Today)

6. ‘The Shark’ stresses only the positive. (USA Today)

7. U.S. pushing Mobutu to leave Zaire. (USA Today)

8. Brussels forecast dismays Rome. (Financial Times)

9. Bundesbank puts case for bigger budget cases. (Financial Times)

10. Fiat scandal. (Financial Times)

11. Picking a peace-keeper. (Washington Post)

12. Who do you think you are kidding Mr.Portillo? (The Mail)

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