Step 62: In the News
Media — Headline English; the passive in news
📖 Read — The Austin Morning News
LOCAL TEAM WINS STATE FINAL! — The headline is short and strong. Under it, the reporter writes: “The Austin High team won the state final on Saturday. More than 5,000 fans were watching in the stadium, and the trophy was presented by the mayor.”
Second story: NEW LIBRARY OPENS DOWNTOWN. “The new city library was opened yesterday. It was designed by a local architect, and free classes are offered every month to readers of all ages.” Ethan reads the paper with his coffee. Hot off the press — and full of the passive!
🧩 Grammar — Headline English + The Passive in News
Headlines save space: they DROP small words (a, the, is, are) and use the present simple for past events: “TEAM WINS FINAL” means The team WON the final. Headline “to” means the future: “MAYOR TO OPEN PARK” = The mayor WILL open the park. In the news TEXT, the passive (Step 45) is everywhere, because the event matters more than the person: The library was opened yesterday. The trophy was presented by the mayor.
- “CITY OPENS NEW PARK” = The city opened a new park.
- “STORM TO HIT COAST” = The storm will hit the coast.
- The bridge was built in 1960.
- Five people were saved by firefighters.
🏗️ Key structures
- Headline ➜ full: “TEAM WINS” = The team won — “DOG SAVES BOY” = A dog saved a boy.
- ___ was opened / built / given in ___ — The museum was opened in 2020.
- ___ were ___ by ___ — The fans were welcomed by the mayor.
⭐ Idiom & natural phrases
This news is hot off the press — nobody knows yet!
🔤 New words
the big title of a news story
The headline says 'Team Wins Final'.
a person whose job is to find and write the news
The reporter interviewed the mayor.
one complete piece of writing in a newspaper or magazine
I read an article about the new library.
something that happens, especially something planned or important
The concert is the biggest event of the summer.
of your town or area; near you
Local news is about our city.
the elected leader of a city
The mayor opened the new park.
a large group of people together in one place
A big crowd watched the game.
do something fun because of a happy event
The fans celebrated all night.
🎧 Say it with me
Local team wins the state final! The trophy was presented by the mayor, and the new library was opened yesterday — hot off the press!
🎤 Your turn to speak
Be a news reporter: give one headline (short, no articles), then the full story in two sentences — one of them passive.
Say it out loud three times. Even better: record it on your phone and listen — your ear is your best teacher.
✍️ Your turn to write
Write a mini news report: a headline, then 4 sentences about an event in your town. Use the passive twice.
See a model answer
NEW PARK OPENS IN OUR TOWN. The town's new park was opened on Saturday by the mayor. A concert was given by local students, and free food was served to 300 guests. The old trees were kept, and new flowers were planted near the lake. Everyone in town celebrated!
Self-check: capital letters? Full stops? Did you use the grammar of this step?
📝 Quick check
Go deeper
This step is a doorway — the full lesson goes much further:
Passive Voice: be + past participle — full lesson + 50-question quiz
🎉 Saved in your progress!