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Linguistic effects on news headline success: Evidence from thousands of online field experiments (Registered Report Protocol)

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  • Kristina Gligorić
  • George Lifchits
  • Robert West
  • Ashton Anderson

Abstract

What makes written text appealing? In this registered report protocol, we propose to study the linguistic characteristics of news headline success using a large-scale dataset of field experiments (A/B tests) conducted on the popular website Upworthy comparing multiple headline variants for the same news articles. This unique setup allows us to control for factors that can have crucial confounding effects on headline success. Based on prior literature and a pilot partition of the data, we formulate hypotheses about the linguistic features that are associated with statistically superior headlines. We will test our hypotheses on a much larger partition of the data that will become available after the publication of this registered report protocol. Our results will contribute to resolving competing hypotheses about the linguistic features that affect the success of text and will provide avenues for research into the psychological mechanisms that are activated by those features.

Suggested Citation

  • Kristina Gligorić & George Lifchits & Robert West & Ashton Anderson, 2021. "Linguistic effects on news headline success: Evidence from thousands of online field experiments (Registered Report Protocol)," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 16(9), pages 1-14, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:plo:pone00:0257091
    DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0257091
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Rosen, Sherwin, 1981. "The Economics of Superstars," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 71(5), pages 845-858, December.
    2. Nick Hagar & Nicholas Diakopoulos, 2019. "Optimizing Content with A/B Headline Testing: Changing Newsroom Practices," Media and Communication, Cogitatio Press, vol. 7(1), pages 117-127.
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