The byline (or by-line in British English) on a newspaper or magazine article gives the name of the writer of the article. Bylines are commonly placed between the headline and the text of the article, although some magazines (notably Reader's Digest) place bylines at the bottom of the page to leave more room for graphical elements around the headline.
Dictionary.com defines a byline as "a printed line of text accompanying a news story, article, or the like, giving the author's name".
Examples
A typical newspaper byline might read:
<blockquote>Tom Joyce<br>New Boston Post Reporter</blockquote>
A byline can also include a brief article summary that introduces the author by name:
<blockquote>Penning a concise description of a long piece has never been as easy as often appears, as Staff Writer John Smith now explains:</blockquote>
Magazine bylines and bylines on opinion pieces often include biographical information on their subjects. A typical biographical byline on a piece of creative nonfiction might read:
<blockquote>John Smith is working on a book, My Time in Ibiza, based on this article. He is returning to the region this summer to gather material for a follow-up essay.</blockquote>
Prevalence
Bylines were rare before the late 19th century. Before then, the most similar practice was the occasional "signed" or "signature" article. The word byline itself first appeared in print in 1926, in a scene set in a newspaper office in The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway.
False attribution
Articles that originate from press agency journalists are sometimes incorrectly attributed to newspaper staff. Dominic Ponsford of the Press Gazette gives the following examples:
- Ben Ellery's interview with the boyfriend of murdered Jo Yeates appeared in the Daily Mail and Daily Mirror; the former newspaper carried four bylines, none of which credited Ellery.
- Andrew Buckwell's exclusive on a paternity issue involving Boris Johnson appeared in the Daily Mail without a byline crediting him.
See also
- Acknowledgment (creative arts and sciences)
- Attribution (copyright)
- Byline strike
- Credit (creative arts)
- Dateline
- Lower third, byline for TV journalists
- Pen name
- Signature block
- Strapline, unrelated but often confused, this is a slogan or product name in advertising.