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Xinjiapo Hua wen bao zhi xin wen biao ti yan jiu : yu yan jie gou yu zhi zuo ce lue = A study of Chinese newspaper headlines in Singapore : linguistic structure and editorial strategies
Other titles
新加坡华文报纸新闻标 题研究 : 语言结构与制作策略
Author
Ng, Bee Lian
Supervisor
Goh, Yeng Seng
Abstract
Studies of Chinese newspaper headlines in Singapore are rare. Serving as a preliminary study of this topic, this Academic Exercise focuses on the linguistic structure and editorial strategies used by two local newspapers: Lianhe Zaobao and Lianhe Wanbao. The following findings are obtained in a five-day corpus:
(1) Sentence structure
More information is embedded in the individual headlines of Lianhe Zaobao. However, Lianhe Wanbao has more headlines that depict the details of the news events.
(2) Lexical items
The names of political figures, professionals and other public figures appear very frequently on the headlines of Lianhe Zaobao, and are addressed in a formal way. On the other hand, the names of artistes are dominant in Lianhe Wanbao, which are addressed in a less formal way. Comparison of geographical names covered by the two papers shows that the headlines of Lianhe Zaobao cover a broader scope, thus suggesting that the paper is more outward looking. The distribution of the names of different organisations suggests that Lianhe Zaobao is more concerned about government affairs than Lianhe Wanbao. The headlines of both papers contain a certain number of unique Chinese phrases used in Singapore.
(3) Typography
Lianhe Wanbao uses a wider range of fonts, font sizes, font styles and colours. A closer examination on the types of news that used bigger font sizes shows that Lianhe Zaobao emphasizes more on hard news. Based on the above findings, the writer argues that the five-day Lianhe Zaobao exhibits a more serious tone than Lianhe Wanbao.
(1) Sentence structure
More information is embedded in the individual headlines of Lianhe Zaobao. However, Lianhe Wanbao has more headlines that depict the details of the news events.
(2) Lexical items
The names of political figures, professionals and other public figures appear very frequently on the headlines of Lianhe Zaobao, and are addressed in a formal way. On the other hand, the names of artistes are dominant in Lianhe Wanbao, which are addressed in a less formal way. Comparison of geographical names covered by the two papers shows that the headlines of Lianhe Zaobao cover a broader scope, thus suggesting that the paper is more outward looking. The distribution of the names of different organisations suggests that Lianhe Zaobao is more concerned about government affairs than Lianhe Wanbao. The headlines of both papers contain a certain number of unique Chinese phrases used in Singapore.
(3) Typography
Lianhe Wanbao uses a wider range of fonts, font sizes, font styles and colours. A closer examination on the types of news that used bigger font sizes shows that Lianhe Zaobao emphasizes more on hard news. Based on the above findings, the writer argues that the five-day Lianhe Zaobao exhibits a more serious tone than Lianhe Wanbao.
Date Issued
2001
Call Number
PL1241 N42
Date Submitted
2001