Hed, Dek, TK: Journalism Jargon 101
Another stint at the editor's desk; a guide to TK and more journo lingo; published stories; *&^!
I had hoped to get this newsletter out last week, but alas, my schedule was busier than expected while filling in for one of my favorite editors at one of my favorite publications. It’s always such a whirlwind: parachuting into an established editorial team; getting into the daily crush of editing, writer correspondence, Slack, the CMS (god help me), photo sourcing; and navigating all the processes and protocols that come with each.
Inevitably, I end up exhausted but energized. It’s incredibly fulfilling to get a peek into the inner workings of a top publication and be part of the good work so many writers and editors are doing in this topsy-turvy industry. And then, there’s that subtle sense of accomplishment from bringing a story into the world that you helped shape into the best version of itself.
Wearing the editor’s hat for a few days also offers a profound appreciation for the massive demands of their jobs — and a timely reminder of one of my professional mottos: How can I make my editor’s job easier? Whatever the interaction is (a pitch, follow-up, letter of introduction, an email to file a story or invoice, or anything in between), I try to make my communication as clear and concise as possible.
Finally, editing gigs make my little journo junkie heart sing over the chance to talk shop with fellow language lovers. And, on that note, here’s a topic I’ve been wanting to write about for a while …
Journalism Jargon 101: Key terms from TK to -30-
Below, a quick and dirty guide to some of the journalistic jargon you may have heard (or even seen in the wild; as noted below, a rogue TK still pops up in published stories from time to time) but still may be confused about. These terms mostly apply to print journalism, but there’s still some crossover with broadcast; meanwhile, this excellent Poynter Institute glossary provides an even deeper dive. Let’s dig in!
TK: Shorthand in journalism and publishing industries, TK stands for “to come” — and yes, “come” is intentionally misspelled so that it’s easier to notice during subsequent rounds of copyedits. TK is a placeholder for something: a statistic, title, address, detail, you name it. As explained in this excellent LitHub article, “Even with digital publications, doing a command-F search for ‘TK’ is a lot faster than wading through all of the t-c combinations in your document.” That said, TK still makes its way into a published story every now and then — which I’m fine with, as it likely means a human, and not AI, is behind it.
Substack has even caught on to the TK awesomeness: In the Draft version, it flags any lines with TK in them with a TK in the margin AND reminds you again before you hit publish! (14 TKs and counting so far for this post.) And if that’s not a sign that the platform knows its journo-heavy user demographic, I’m not sure what is.
As anyone who’s ever read an early version of anything of mine knows, I use TK all the time. It’s invaluable on deadline: Pop in TKs as needed without breaking your head-down flow, and when you’ve banged out a draft, go back and fill them in. But this spiky, sassy little tool is far more than a godsend for productivity; it’s deeply ingrained in my identity as a journalist and writer. TKTKTK forever!
HED: Short for headline. Like TK and the next few terms, it’s intentionally misspelled so it stands out during edits. Every outlet has its own style for headlines, but it’s always helpful to familiarize yourself with them before pitching — whether you’re a journo or PR rep — and try to come up with a hed or two. And if you can’t figure out a good headline, you may need to go back to the drawing board with your idea.
DEK: A line or two under the hed that provides more info about the story up top. Most, not all, print and digital outlets have some form of a dek for their stories. Hed and dek often go together, as in: “Any ideas for the hed/dek on this story, Cub Reporter?”
LEDE: The journo version of lead, or intro: The first sentence or paragraph of a story. Your lede should be the most compelling part of the story, enticing the reader to keep going. (Here’s one of my most favorite ledes.) And be sure not to bury the lede: Put it up high, where it belongs.
GRAF: Short for paragraph. Another personal favorite.
NUT GRAF: The crux of the story in a nutshell: one or two sentences, often in one graf, that appear high in the story and explain its significance and why the reader should care. While not all stories have a nut graf, most do, and learning how to write a good one is a key skill for journos.
KICKER: The last line of a story. Done right, the kicker should sum up the story and leave a strong impression (this one pretty much wrote itself).
SLUG: A unique identifier of a few key words that publications use in their CMS to track stories throughout the editing process. The term comes from the bygone eras of hot-metal and Linotype printing, when a line of lead was called a slug.
STRINGER: Another word for freelancer: an independent journalist or reporter who contributes to several different publications. There are a couple of theories on where the term came from. One relates to how newspaper stories were assigned in column inches, which were measured with string; stringers were then paid accordingly. But it can also mean “one who strings words together.”
And, finally …
-30- When I file a story, I still end the piece with this symbol, which harkens to old-school journalism practices. You may even still see -30-, or its cousin, ###, gracing some press releases these days. But until I read this story, I didn’t know all the possible origin stories, which go all the way back to ancient Athens.
Recently Published Stories
New York Post: Cheeseburgers in paradise? Fast food is coming to your next first class flight (this also had a shorter version that appeared in print!)
Afar:
Trip Advisor: The four best areas to stay in Amsterdam
And That’s a *&^$ Wrap!
My little guy is scraped up from shin to shoulder right now. Nothing serious, thankfully, just some minor spills on the playground and his bike. The other day, he and I were out for an evening walk when he tripped and hit his knee on a picnic table, opening up a scab. He’s a tough kid, but I could tell he was in pain, and through his tears he begged me to let him say a bad word.
Against my better judgement, I agreed — but only the d-word.
He paused, thinking. Then: “This heck damn hurts!”
I nodded, trying to suppress a laugh while summoning up my most concerned expression.
Then, another pause. “I don’t want to get into that habit.”
Good idea, buddy.
Wherever you are in the world, I hope you have a darn good week.
Blane
Terrific information. It is always fun to learn how other professions operate.
Loved this journo jargon breakdown! TK always confused me a bit, but now I finally got it ;) Thanks Blane!