Apply a house style guide consistently across headlines, captions, bylines and body copy.
Public Relations & Media
Sub-Editing and Headline Writing for Digital Publications
Master the sub-editing skills and headline craft digital publications need: copy accuracy, house style, search-aware headlines and page production under deadline pressure.
🗓️Duration5 training days
📚Content4 modules · 8 sessions
🎓On completionAccredited attendance certificate
About the programme
Course Overview
Digital publications live or die on the first few words a reader sees, yet a headline is only as strong as the sub-editing behind it. This course trains participants in the full sub-editing role: enforcing house style, checking facts and attribution, tightening copy to fit a template, and catching legal risk before publication. Headline writing is treated as its own discipline, covering search-friendly phrasing, social headline variants, push notification wording and the balance between accuracy and reader appeal. Participants practise on live-style copy under realistic deadlines, learning how a content management system handles metadata, image cropping and related-article modules. Sessions also cover cross-platform consistency, so the same story reads correctly as a homepage teaser, a social card and a search snippet. The course finishes with a page-production exercise where participants sub-edit, headline and publish a set of stories against a countdown, then review the output against a style-guide checklist used by professional newsrooms.
Expected Learning Outcomes
Write headlines optimised for search visibility, social sharing and push notifications without misleading readers.
Check copy for factual accuracy, correct attribution and consistent terminology before publication.
Identify legal risks in copy, including defamation, contempt and privacy issues, and refer them appropriately.
Produce a story for a content management system, including metadata, image cropping and related links.
Trim copy to fit a template or word count without losing meaning or context.
Sub-edit and publish a set of stories accurately within a realistic newsroom deadline.
Who Should Attend
Junior journalists moving into sub-editing or production editor roles.
Digital content editors responsible for publishing news or feature copy.
Social media editors who write headline variants for multiple platforms.
Corporate newsroom staff producing press releases and website news copy.
Freelance copy editors working with online news and magazine clients.
Editors transitioning from print sub-editing to digital publishing workflows.
Course Modules
Select any module to see its sessions and points.
01House Style and Copy Accuracy
2 sessions · 8 points
Session 1Applying House Style Under Deadline
- Apply a publication's style guide consistently to spelling, numerals, titles and terminology.
- Standardise bylines, datelines and captions across a batch of stories before publication.
- Resolve style conflicts between wire copy, press releases and in-house conventions.
- Maintain a style-guide amendment log when new terms or rulings are agreed with editors.
Session 2Fact and Attribution Checks
- Verify names, titles, figures and quotations against source material before publication.
- Check attribution wording distinguishes fact, opinion and unconfirmed claims.
- Cross-check copy against wire agency updates to catch outdated or corrected information.
- Flag inconsistencies between headline, standfirst and body copy before a story goes live.
02Headline Writing for Digital Platforms
2 sessions · 8 points
Session 1Search and Social Headline Craft
- Write search-friendly headlines that front-load keywords without sacrificing clarity.
- Draft alternative headlines for social cards, push alerts and newsletter subject lines.
- Balance curiosity and accuracy in headline phrasing to avoid misleading readers.
- Test headline variants against click-through data and revise underperforming versions.
Session 2Standfirsts, Captions and Metadata
- Write standfirsts that add context beyond the headline without repeating it.
- Caption images and video accurately, including credit and consent requirements.
- Complete metadata fields, including meta description and tags, for search and social display.
- Select and crop images to fit template dimensions while preserving editorial meaning.
03Legal and Ethical Checks in Production
2 sessions · 8 points
Session 1Identifying Legal Risk in Copy
- Recognise defamation risk in headlines, captions and copy before publication.
- Apply contempt of court rules to reporting on active legal proceedings.
- Check privacy and consent requirements before publishing images or personal details.
- Escalate high-risk copy to a legal or senior editorial contact with a clear risk summary.
Session 2Corrections and Post-Publication Changes
- Draft a correction or clarification that meets house policy and platform requirements.
- Track significant post-publication edits in a version log for editorial accountability.
- Handle reader complaints about accuracy through an agreed escalation process.
- Update syndicated or republished copy consistently across all platforms after a correction.
04Digital Page Production
2 sessions · 8 points
Session 1Working in a Content Management System
- Publish a story through a content management system, including scheduling and related links.
- Configure homepage and section placement to match editorial priority.
- Set up article templates, image galleries and embedded media correctly.
- Troubleshoot common publishing errors, including broken links and formatting faults.
Session 2Deadline Simulation and Review
- Sub-edit, headline and publish a batch of stories within a fixed deadline.
- Review published output against a style-guide and legal checklist.
- Give and receive structured feedback on headline and copy quality.
- Prioritise a queue of stories by newsworthiness and deadline under time pressure.
What the participant receives
4 course modules
A structured syllabus
8 training sessions
across 5 days
32 detailed points
Applied, detailed content
Accredited attendance certificate
On completing the programme
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