Google announced a new content tag for publishers seeking more exposure from their article listings in Google News. 

The “standout” tag enables publishers to display articles with the label “Featured near the article/content listing. The tag is placed in the HTML header of articles  and the syntax for the new tag is as follows:

<link rel="standout" href=“http://www.example.com/scoop_article_2.html” />

Google suggests that the tag can be used to point to your own content or to other sources. Other sources you say? Yes. Google indicated that recognizing the “original journalistic contributions” of others is important in helping publishers earn trust as their own content is promoted on the Web.

Google has asked that the Standout tag be used by publishers citing their own content at most seven times in each calendar week. Should a site exceed that limit, over time the site may find that its tags are less recognized or ignored altogether by Google. Consider the new tags one more signal that determines prominence on Google news.