Nowadays, you can often hear the word "tabloid". Many of us define it in our own way or have a concept far from reality about it. Everyone should get acquainted with it, and especially those who decided to devote themselves to journalism.
A tabloid is a newspaper that differs from its counterparts in a special type of layout. To understand this issue, you should familiarize yourself with the features of the publication.
Characteristic features of tabloids
To distinguish a tabloid from other publications, it is worth paying attention to the following features of its layout, content and design:
- The option of printing information on the usual A2 sheet is excluded. To create tabloids, a product with half the size, that is, A3, is used. This layout option allows users to conveniently read the newspaper anywhere, even in transport, thanks to the ability to freely turn pages.
- A tabloid is a newspaper that is created with many illustrations. Their feature is the lack of a traditional form. Moreover, images often occupy the space in which the text should be located.
- Tabloid articles have a small volume, which allows the reader to get acquainted with useful information in a short time. This is a convenient option, since the text does not contain unnecessary information.
- The headlines are catchy and in large print.
- In the process of layout various colors are actively used, including for highlighting text. You can attract the reader’s attention if you place separate parts of the article that are white on a colored or black background. This technology is used for tabloids.
Having familiarized with these features of the layout, you can understand how the tabloid newspaper differs from other types of publications. In everyday life, this does not matter, but it is quite important in carrying out professional activities, especially if it is related to journalism or the use of print.
Is it possible to confuse the tabloid with other newspapers?
Some researchers mistakenly believe that the presence of erotic photographs in it is a clear sign of the tabloid. Of course, illustrations of this orientation may be present. But this cannot be called a prerequisite or their distinguishing feature, because a tabloid is a newspaper. Most likely, the presence of eroticism will indicate the tabloid or "yellow" nature of the press.
How to distinguish a tabloid from other publications with similar characteristics?
In this case, it is worth noting that a large number of tabloid publications do have a tabloid format. For this reason, there is a certain mixing of concepts. After all, it turns out that this type of layout is used not only for tabloids, but also for the purpose of designing the content of any publication. Consequently, most yellow newspapers are tabloids in appearance. This leads to the fact that readers cannot distinguish between different types of publications from each other.
Often there are situations when tabloid publications use printing on sheets of A2 format. But there are also reverse cases when serious Russian tabloids use other types of layouts in order to attract users' attention and deviate from standard options.
What should be remembered?
Readers should pay attention to the fact that most often a tabloid is an unreliable source of information. Serious publications that have proven themselves are more trustworthy than their counterparts, and this is understandable. But still, the tabloids are more reliable than the yellow press, so you should learn to distinguish between these two types of newspapers. As you can understand, this is not difficult for the user.