HTML News Article Markup: Headlines, Byline, and Update Times

News pages help readers quickly answer what happened, when, and who reported it. A clear headline and a machine-readable publication date make the article easier to follow.

What You Need to Know

Use time for dates and ordinary text for the byline; the header groups the introductory information. When an article is corrected, make the update clear.

The goal is not to collect as many tags as possible. Pick the element that best describes what the content really is.

Example: See It in Action

Here is a simple example to experiment with. Type it, save the file, and check what the browser displays.

This is a short HTML fragment. To try it as a webpage, put it inside the body element of a complete HTML document.

<article>
    <header>
        <h1>School Opens New Library</h1>
        <p>By Alex — <time datetime="2026-10-19">October 19, 2026</time>
        </p>
    </header>
    <p>Students can now borrow more books.</p>
</article>

Let’s Understand the Example

• Article marks a piece that could make sense on its own, such as a news post or recipe.
• Header introduces a page or section, often with a title and navigation.
• An h1 introduces the main subject of the page. Use the heading level for structure rather than font size.
• Datetime gives a date or time in a machine-readable form, separate from the friendly text shown to visitors.

You should see a readable heading and its related content. The heading level tells readers how the ideas fit together, not merely how large the letters look.

What Should You See?

The page should display “School Opens New Library” as a heading, followed by its related content. Change the heading text and refresh the browser to see the result.

Read only the headings, from top to bottom. Do they tell a sensible story? If not, move sections or choose levels that match the content.

Try It Yourself

1. Add a second paragraph and an updated-on note with time.
2. Save your changes, open or refresh the page, and compare the result with the original example.
3. Tell a friend what your change did. If you are not sure, undo it, refresh the page, and compare.

Common Beginner Mistakes

• Using a made-up timestamp that disagrees with the visible publication date.
• Avoid picking tags just for their default bold, italic or spaced appearance. Use CSS for presentation.

Key Takeaways

• News pages help readers quickly answer what happened, when, and who reported it.
• Article marks a piece that could make sense on its own, such as a news post or recipe.
• Use time for dates and ordinary text for the byline; the header groups the introductory information. When an article is corrected, make the update clear.