JONATHAN CHAIT FEBRUARY 18, 2011
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I would like to belatedly protest to outcome of TNR's "Boring Headline Contest" on Twitter. the Winning entry, "Chemist Doubts Hair-Straightener With Formaldehyde-Free Formula," is surely quite boring. But the best entry was surely this:
Belgian King Extends Term Of Coalition Mediator
Now, I will disclose that this entry was submitted by my brother. But I believe it hews perfectly to the original spirit of the contest. Let me quote from Michael Kinsley's iconic column creating the concept:
My favorite genre of boring headline is the one gravely informing you that a development you weren't aware of and don't care about has reversed itself, ideally in some distant part of the globe. "Nepal Premier Won't Resign" is a goldenoldie example, but there was a masterpiece in the Times as recently as April 26: "Chill Falls on Warming Relations Between Australia and Indonesia." Closer to home but almost as choice was "University of Rochester Decides to Keep Name" (Times, April 18). A close cousin of the reversed-insignificantdevelopment headline is the nothinghappened- at-all headline. An outstanding recent example in that category was "Dramatic Changes Fail to Materialize on Hill" (Washington Post, April 23). Then there's the nothing-is-going-to-happen headline. The judges found "Surprises Unlikely in Indiana" (Chicago Tribune, April 29) almost poignant.
The Belgian story contains two of these elements: It reports that a development you were unaware of has not changed at all. The Belgian coalition mediator is staying in place. Phew!
Kinsley also wrote, "references to Canada are not essential to a boring headline. Merely helpful." Belgium may not technically be Canada, but it is Canada in spirit. Nothing interesting ever happens in Belgium save the occasional German military invasion, and even that is merely a temporary way station in the process of arriving somewhere more interesting.
One day I aspire to have enough sway over this blog to assert nepotistic influence.
13 comments
Someday. This is really strange. A while ago this afternoon, I was contemplating writing the following in the post immediately below this one (but I wound up not doing so): Every generation could use a Michael Kinsley but not every generation gets one. Our great and good fortune is that we have a Kinsley and his name is Jonathan Chait. Have a great weekend everyone, including you, Mr, Chait.
- liberalref
February 18, 2011 at 6:52pm
"Area Journalist Touts Own Brother" indeed
- dhchait
February 18, 2011 at 6:58pm
I realize it's too late to win. But, in the spirit of Chait's comments, a headline from Boston.com: Canoers cited for boating on Los Angeles River The canoers, to top it off, were a Canadian folk rock band.
- wilburuva3
February 18, 2011 at 7:46pm
I'm late to this, too, but did you know that TNR had a boring headline contest years ago? I even won it one week. In the mid-90s for awhile (at least for 6 months, as I recall) each print issue asked readers to snail-mailed in boring headlines and they printed the last week's entry they liked best. For some reason, I can't find mine in your online archive, but it was around 1997, probably in May. The headline I found was from a local newspaper in the Arlington, VA, area, and it read, "June Republican Primary To Determine Who Will Face Democrat In November."
- dgenser
February 18, 2011 at 10:45pm
I think we should have a Best Imitation Of Marty Peretz Headline contest.
- Sophia
February 18, 2011 at 11:59pm
Excellent stuff Jon! Now, how about a contest, not for the most boring headline, but for the most redundant. Such as, "Televangelist tearfully confesses to marital infidelity".
- robertgorton
February 19, 2011 at 12:53am
Or, "Lindsey Lohan's probation revoked"
- robertgorton
February 19, 2011 at 1:23am
I think we need to take Sophia up on her challenge "How an incompetant Obama brought us to this point and is clearly the last thing we need in unwinding the intricacies of the curent breakdown in talks between the NFL owners and players, and don't even think about counting on those meshuganas in the U.N. to provide any assistance whatsoever."
- Tristan
February 19, 2011 at 8:37pm
You know you have a boring country when you've just set the record for the number of days without a government (passing post-Saddam Iraq!) and this is all that happens: http://www.rferl.org/content/belgium_beard/2312352.html
- austinexpat
February 19, 2011 at 9:37pm
Obama's Cairo Speech Worse Than Goebbels and How Samantha Power Is Cute Even Though I Hate Her Ideas and That Bugs Me
- ironyroad
February 20, 2011 at 1:59am
I Was The One Who Forced This Magazine To Endorse Lieberman, And I'd Do It Again; He Was The Safest Choice For Israel, And Isn't That Really What Matters?
- austinexpat
February 20, 2011 at 3:28pm
Ahem....I think there is an irony in that the headline of this blog entry, namely, "TNR Boring Headline Contest Unfair", meets several criteria for a boring headline. Thoughts?
- sokol8
February 20, 2011 at 3:29pm
"My favorite genre of boring headline is the one gravely informing you that a development you weren't aware of and don't care about has reversed itself, ideally in some distant part of the globe... there was a masterpiece in the Times as recently as April 26: "Chill Falls on Warming Relations Between Australia and Indonesia." No doubt I'm just an excessively touchy Aussie. (Why, the Brits tell us that all the time!) But I chuckled to myself at the thought that a headline about changing relations between two middle-ranking powers in a neighbouring geo-political region could really be more boring, trivial and irrelevant than a headline reading: "TNR Boring Headline Contest Unfair"
- dburchell
February 21, 2011 at 5:48pm