A to Z Challenge - M for Masthead

Theme - Journalism jargons

This is tricky because there are two meanings, depending on whether you are following the British model or the American model.

THE BRITISH USAGE

In India, we follow the British style; and the word 'masthead' refers to the entire panel right on top of the front page of a newspaper or the cover of a magazine, comprising the name of the publication, the date, the price, the place of publication, etc.

This is called 'nameplate' or 'flag' in the US.

This is called 'masthead' in India and other Commonwealth nations

This is called 'nameplate' in nations that follow the American style

The masthead/nameplate is the basic identity of the publication, it's not altered and it appears in the same way, every day.   

THE AMERICAN USAGE

In the American style, 'masthead' refers to a box of text that contains the name of the editor, publisher, printer, the address of the newspaper office, phone numbers, email ID etc.

This is referred to as the 'imprint' in Commonwealth countries.

Masthead/Imprint appears at a fixed place in every issue of the journal.

I wasn't able to access the masthead of The NYT since even with a paid subscription I have access only to the PDF of the front page of the paper. I am not sure on which page of The NYT the masthead appears. The image above is the Indian equivalent, called the 'imprint', of The Times of India's, Bengaluru edition.