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Journalism & Media vocabulary · Headlines and News Language

Slam

Meaning in journalism & media, with examples

/slæm/verbCommon term

In journalism & media, slam means: In headlines, to criticise someone or something very strongly in public.

In Turkish: sert eleştirmek, yüklenmek, topa tutmak

How it is used

Common in tabloid and online headlines: Parents slam school's new phone ban, Fans slam ticket prices. Serious outlets often prefer criticise or condemn because slam can sound sensational.

Example sentences

  1. Headline: Residents slam plan to close village post office.

  2. The union slammed the decision as unfair to night-shift workers.

Common collocations

  • slam a decision
  • slam a plan
  • slammed by critics
  • slam as unfair
  • probeA short word for an official investigation, used especially in headlines; as a verb, to investigate something carefully.
  • headlineThe title printed above a news story in large letters, or written at the top of an online article, that tells readers quickly what the story is about.
  • sensationalismReporting that exaggerates or dramatises events, or focuses on shocking details, in order to attract attention rather than to inform.
  • tabloidA newspaper with small pages, short stories and big pictures, often focused on celebrities, crime and scandal; also a style of sensational journalism.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Headlines and News Language

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