Lois & Clark Forums Forums Fan Fiction Fanfic Related FFQ: Leads vs. Ledes

Okay, not sure if this is the right place to post, but it seemed the most logical. I'm taking Journalism 101 this semester and I noticed this funny looking word on the syllabus: Lede

I assumed this was the same as lead (like a lead on a story), and I asked the teacher what the difference was? Had I been using the wrong word all this time? Turns out in the world of Journalism, you use the spelling "lede." And she mentioned if you didn't, and used "lead," you would be ridiculed incessantly.

I don't think I'll change any of the words in my story since we all widely accept "lead" without derision, but I did want to know what you all thought or know about the subject. Does anyone use this spelling their stories? (I haven't noticed in what I've read.) Or is this as much "news" to you as it is to me?

Sara (who is starting to wonder if the teacher actually meant story ledes...or if that was just her word for the first line of the story...also called a lede...I think )

Do modern journalists use it as a spelling? It'd surprise me... but then, I'm not a journalist. I'll be interested to read what US journalism students or graduates have to say about this, Sara - if AnnieM is still around, she'd know, I'm sure.

Anyway... just out of curiosity, I looked up 'lede' on Marriam-Webster, Bartleby.com and Dictionary.com - none of them had an entry for it. Websters 1913 dictionary had 'lede' as an Old English spelling of 'lead', with quotes from Chaucer and Shakespeare. If I still had access to the online Oxford English Dictionary, I know I'd be able to get more information for you, including a full etymology.


Wendy

Maybe this is kind of like "theatre" and "theater"--People who are actors, directors, etc. usually stick with the old spelling. Most other people spell it the new way.
I, however, have never seen 'lede' used. I'm interested to see what everyone else says...
--Wanda

I was starting to think your prof was pulling your leg, but I decided to do a net search for the word itself. Most of the first 15 hits were about the name Lede or other random things. A few actually mentioned journalism:

This one, called "Fundamentals of Journalism," was actually the first hit, and it has some interesting info.

This one is part of a text book on journalism, or something like that. It's a PDF file, though, which I decided not to download, so I've only read the few sentences that came up on the search page.

This one is a page about writing ledes.

So, it looks like it's a technical journalistic term which refers to the beginning of an article. It's not a lead like a source or a clue.

Paul

Thanks Paul! I feel a bit foolish now, but oh well. At least I didn't embarrass myself in class.

Sara

I think it's less to do with old/new than it is geography, Wanda. Or, I guess, it is old/new in the sense that the US is the 'newer' country. <g>

Far as I'm aware, theatre is UK English and theater, US. Certainly, theatre is most-used in the UK and not just by those in the business.

Unless I've missed something over recent years and theater has crept into UK too. Always possible.

LabRat

Well, before I read Paul's research, I would have thought that your teacher was crazy. I did take one journalism class in college and never heard of that protocol, but from what Paul has shown us, I guess there is legitimacy in it.

It's amazing what people in "the business" know and practice that we lay people are clueless about. And if you are in a particular business, nothing grates on your nerves more than when the masses, who obviously have no way of knowing any better, do it differently. Not to open up old wounds, but this follows that whole argument I made several months back about two spacing after periods being obsolete in the graphic design industry. Most people outside that world still adhere to the old ways.

Well, now I have a bit of new trivia to add to my Trivial Pursuit playing skills. What does the word "lede" mean? I know! I know!!

Lynn

One of my degrees is in Communication, and I have never heard of it. In my media writing class, the beginning of the story was always referred to as "lead" or "lead-in." I even went back and double checked all of my old journalism text books for you and found nothing.

Caveat: my major was in Comm Theory, not Journalism & Print Media, so the dabble classes I took in it may have just not mentioned it. Also, I don't work in the field, maybe it's simply acquired slang?

Well, I've heard of the term, in the way Paul's sources defined it. It was a new one on me fairly recently, but in the last year or so I think I've run across it several times... probably mostly while I'm reading political blogs and the links therefrom <g> There's some amount of criticism/analysis of news coverage, so I guess "lede" comes up in that context.

PJ

I'm coming in a little late her, but I thought I'd add my two cents worth.

Yes, modern day journalists use the spelling "lede" when referring to the first sentence of their articles. It was one of the first things we learned in Introduction to Newswriting and I have never seen any journalist or journalism professor use the "lead" spelling.

Well, I don't know about ridiculed incessantly, but people would definitely look at you funny and wonder where you went to school and if you had any actual experience as a journalist.

I hadn't heard that the origin was to prevent confusion with the metal lead, but it makes sense. I always sort of wondered how it started, but never cared enough to look it up. Now I know.

Also journalists have a habit of purposely mispelling words that are not intended to be printed. It's a safeguard to keep placeholders from accidentally winding up in the paper. For example, when newspapers are laid out, dummy text is used in headline spaces to show how many characters will fit. Rather than writing "Town Council Headline Goes Here" which on first glance looks like a real headline and might accidentally be overlooked in the rush to get the paper finished, the dummy text reads more like, "Twon Concil Hed Gose Heer". With that spelling, even if the copyeditors forget to write the headline that goes there, SOMEONE is going to notice that it's wrong and call attention to it before it gets printed.

Annie

It can also be the type of theater, too. Or maybe I'm just weird, going to the movie theater, and going to the theatre to see a play.

Here in Canada we use 're' over 'er' anyday.

Karen wrote:

Interesting! I thought that in US spelling/language the 'er' version meant both. In the UK, though, if I wanted to go and see Harry Potter IV I'd go to see it in a cinema. If I wanted to see a play, I'd go to a theatre.


Wendy

"Theater" can mean both, Wendy, but "Theatre" is considered more distinguished or cultured, or something to that effect. Movies are not distinguished, but plays can be. So, some playhouses will use the alternate spelling, for atmosphere, or to try to create atmosphere.

In (written) conversation, "theater" can again refer to either, but "theatre" will generally, if it is used, refer to a playhouse.

That's my understanding, anyway.

Paul