CL
Not to defend this particular headline, but the legacy of the Ceefax limit still exists. Stories still need to have a short headline, which is used in indexes, syndication etc. Considering this turned up in the long headline, though, I think it's just sloppiness over brevity.
Do the first four paragraphs of a new article still make up the red button story too?
The decline of BBC News online
Why do they still write their headlines in this style? It made sense years ago, when they were writing to the Ceefax character limit, but that's long gone. I recall a few years ago an incident where they referred to a man from China in a headline as "China man" just to save a few characters.
Not to defend this particular headline, but the legacy of the Ceefax limit still exists. Stories still need to have a short headline, which is used in indexes, syndication etc. Considering this turned up in the long headline, though, I think it's just sloppiness over brevity.
Do the first four paragraphs of a new article still make up the red button story too?