LESSON 2 Processing the Article Header
- The purpose of this lesson is to discuss the Article header of the raw articles which
editors receive and the correct format for the outgoing post.
Below is an example of what an editor receives via email from RoboEditor (Robo).
We will step through this sample while discussing the article header. CAUTION -
even though it may look a bit intimidating at first glance, it is not that difficult to
sort through.
Newshawk: Jo-D
Tracknum: 1537.4.3.1.0.20000511233400.01a8d2e0
XPubdate: Tue, 09 May 2000
##################### MAP ####################
Source: Time Magazine (US)
Copyright: 2001 Time Inc
Contact: letters@time.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/451
Website: http://www.time.com/time/
##################### MAP ####################
Source: Times, The (UK)
Copyright: 2001 Times Newspapers Ltd
Contact: letters@the-times.co.uk
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/454
Website: http://www.the-times.co.uk/
##################### MAP ####################
Source: Washington Times (DC)
Copyright: 2001 News World Communications, Inc.
Contact: letters@washingtontimes.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/492
Website: http://www.washtimes.com/
##################### MAP ####################
Pubdate: Tue, 09 May 2000
Source: Washington Times
Author: Stephen Dinan, The Washington Times
[article appears here]
- a. Newshawk
- The first line of an outgoing post must be the Newshawk field. This field contains the
Newshawk name and possibly their email address or website address. This can usually be left
as is.
- b. Tracknum
- The second line of an outgoing post must be the Tracknum field. This
field contains a randomly generated number which helps Robo
track incoming/outgoing articles. This one is all Robo so we do not touch
it...believe me, Robo will cough/choke/hiss and spit if we change it!
- c. Pubdate
- The third line of an outgoing post is the Pubdate field which is the
date the article was published. The first editing task is to ensure the Pubdate
field is filled in correctly.
The correct format for Pubdate is: day, dd mon year
example: Tue, 09 May 2000
Robo's best guess at the Pubdate: appears after the XPubdate: label.
Newshawk: Jo-D and Tom-E
Tracknum: 1537.4.3.1.0.20000511233400.01a8d2e0
XPubdate: Tue, 09 May 2000
Verify the publication date by comparing the XPubdate field with the date
sent in by the newshawk. The date the article was published should appear near
the top of the actual article.
- Delete the X from the front of the Pubdate field.
- If Robo's guess matches the provided date - move along to the next step.
- If they do not match, replace Robo's guess with the correct date in the
correct format.
The first three lines of your submission will now look similar to this:
Newshawk: Jo-D and Tom-E
Tracknum: 1537.4.3.1.0.20000511233400.01a8d2e0
Pubdate: Tue, 09 May 2000
If the publish date does not appear in the article, the editor should verify the publish
date by cerfing the source site or by contacting the newshawk.
- d. Source
- Before Robo sends an article out, it searches
the MAP Media database and attempts to locate the source of the article from the information
provided by the newshawk. All possible matches are inserted at the top of the outgoing
message. Each source block is separated by lines of pound signs. Here, again, is how it looks:
Newshawk: Jo-D and Tom-E
Tracknum: 1537.4.3.1.0.20000511233400.01a8d2e0
Pubdate: Tue, 09 May 2000
##################### MAP ####################
Source: Time Magazine (US)
Copyright: 2001 Time Inc
Contact: letters@time.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/451
Website: http://www.time.com/time/
##################### MAP ####################
Source: Times, The (UK)
Copyright: 2001 Times Newspapers Ltd
Contact: letters@the-times.co.uk
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/454
Website: http://www.the-times.co.uk/
##################### MAP ####################
Source: Washington Times (DC)
Copyright: 2001 News World Communications, Inc.
Contact: letters@washingtontimes.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/492
Website: http://www.washtimes.com/
##################### MAP ####################
Pubdate: Tue, 09 May 2000
Source: Washington Times
Author: Stephen Dinan, The Washington Times
[article appears here]
The next editing task is to match the submitted source with the source information from
our media database. Look below the last pound sign line to see what source has been
submitted by the newshawk. Delete all other source information and source separators.
The modified header looks like this:
Newshawk: Jo-D and Tom-E
Tracknum: 1537.4.3.1.0.20000511233400.01a8d2e0
Pubdate: Tue, 09 May 2000
Source: Washington Times (DC)
Copyright: 2001 News World Communications, Inc.
Contact: letters@washingtontimes.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/492
Website: http://www.washtimes.com/
If a match can not be made, address the article to stafftalk@mapinc.org. Another editor
will take the responsibility of completing the processing.
- d. Author
- The next editing task is to ensure the Author field is filled in correctly.
If the Author field is not supplied by the newshawk, look to see if there is a byline in
the article. This is usually below the title with the phrase:
by Stephen Dinan, The Washington Times
Once the article header has been completed, remove the newshawk input. The final product
will look like this:
Newshawk: Jo-D and Tom-E
Tracknum: 1537.4.3.1.0.20000511233400.01a8d2e0
Pubdate: Tue, 09 May 2000
Source: Washington Times (DC)
Copyright: 2001 News World Communications, Inc.
Contact: letters@washingtontimes.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/492
Website: http://www.washtimes.com/
Author: Stephen Dinan, The Washington Times
Note: This story is based in part on wire service reports.
[actual article text appears here]
Continue to Lab 2 or Return to Manual Outline
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