bus plunge

Noun

bus plunge (countable and uncountable, plural bus plunges)

1. (idiomatic, often, uncountable) A phrase often used in filler story headlines in print newspapers, prior to the adoption of computer-aided typesetting and publishing methods, as it filled out the usual width of a column in the eight-column layout then prevalent in the industry.
   • “One of them said to me, ‘We’re keeping up the bus plunges in your absence,’ or words to that effect,” says Siegal. Bus plunges had become an inside joke, with editors scouting the wires for new ones.2006 November, Jack Shafer, “The Rise and Fall of the “Bus Plunge” Story”, in Slate, The Slate Group, archived from the original on 25 Jun 2024
   • Here's the thing about newspapers: they can't publish blank space. You've gotta put something in there. So editors started putting in lots of "bus plunge" briefs because they were short, simple, and filled space easily.2012 October, George Patrick, “Why Buses Always Plunge But Never Fall, Drop, Descend Or Plummet”, in Jalopnik, G/O Media, archived from the original on 29 Aug 2024
   1. (idiomatic, often) A specific instance of such a story.
      • We ran a bus plunge story on page 6 to fill the empty space so we could make deadline.
   2. (broadly, idiomatic, often) A similar example in other media of a filler story.
2. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see bus, plunge. An instance of a bus falling from an elevated place.