Writing a Cutline (Caption) for the News: Three examples of an often overlooked journalism skill
In journalism, the “cutline” is the text below a picture, explaining what the reader is looking at. It’s what most people call a caption, but to a journalist, a “caption” is more like a title that appears above the photo, while the “cutline” is a few lines of text under the photo.
An AP style caption is usually two sentences, with the first answering the question “What, exactly am I looking at?” (with names of the one or two most important people in the photo, the location / event, and date) and the second answering the question “Why is that newsworthy?” Space is limited; brevity is golden.
![](data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf-8,<svg height="270px" width="274px" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" version="1.1"/>)
Here, we see a dry, pointless cutline that offers nothing at all that the reader can’t gather from the picture. Yes, I can see the guy is gesturing. Snooze!
![](data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf-8,<svg height="289px" width="300px" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" version="1.1"/>)
![](data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf-8,<svg height="300px" width="184px" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" version="1.1"/>)
A much more effective cutline builds on the photo to draws the reader into the story.
I found these great cutline examples on ibiblio.
Update, 10 May 2023
Links to ibiblio now come up as “403 Forbidden.
Added link to Janet Walsh’s description of AP photo captions.
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Post was last modified on 10 May 2023 10:33 am
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Great insights on the often-overlooked art of writing cutlines, Dennis! It’s fascinating how a well-crafted cutline can transform a photo from mere decoration to a key part of the storytelling process. I appreciate your emphasis on brevity and newsworthiness—it's such an essential skill in journalism. The examples you provided really illustrate the difference between a bland cutline and one that adds real value. I’ll definitely be more mindful of my cutlines from now on!
...I was taught that without ...1. "Grabbing Reader Attention"... you're writing to the wind~! and ...2..without "Building Reader Interest" ...you're writing to the Sea...
When your writing instructor tried to "anchor your thought" to the concept: 1. Grab Attention... 2. Create Interest... 3. Build Desire... 4. Get A Decision... what was he/she doing?
At times, life becomes disheveled enough to demand BOLD actions... and to expect BOLD results~!