Asign of News

7/29/2019 Asign of News

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Course title:

News reporting and writing

Topic:

News writing techniques

Submitted to:

Miss. saima kausar

Submitted by:

Ayesha Fatima(565)Sana saleem(561)

Maryam sajjad(584)

Date:

22.2.2013

BS(hons)Mass communication

Semester v


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Contents:

Writing story structureWhat is the lead?What goes in the lead?The five Ws

Who What Where Why When How

Types of leadBasics for lead

Inverted pyramid styleThe chronological storyThe inverted pyramid storyMost important facts


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News writing techniques

News style is the prose style used fornews reporting in media such

as newspapers, radio and television. News style encompasses not only vocabulary and sentence,

but also the way in which stories present the information in terms of relative importance, tone,and intended audience.

News writing attempts to answer all the basic questions about any particular event - who, what,when, where and why (the Five Ws) and also often how - at the opening of the article. Thisform of structure is sometimes called the "inverted pyramid", to refer to the decreasingimportance of information in subsequent paragraphs.

News stories also contain at least one of the following important characteristics relative to theintended audience: proximity, prominence, timeliness, human interest, oddity, or consequence.

Writing story structure

You have several options when it comes to the structure of your story. You can choose a

chronological order, where you present the key events in your story as they occurred. It is more

likely, though, that you will use one of the three traditional news forms: the inverted pyramid,

the narrative or the hourglass.

1. The most popular structure for news stories is the inverted pyramid. In the inverted pyramid,

the information is arranged in descending order of importance. The most important material is

placed at the beginning of the story, and less important material follows. Succeeding paragraphs

explain and support the lead.

2. The inverted pyramid is popular because it still serves readers well. It tells them quickly what

they want to know. It also serves the reporter by forcing her to sharpen her news judgment, to

identify and rank the most important elements of the story.

3. But the inverted pyramid has big disadvantages. Although it delivers the most important news

first, it does not encourage good writing. Many times stories do not have an ending crafted by the

writer; they simply end. There is no suspense. Reporters tend to lose interest, time and energy.

Writing in the second half of the story is casual at best, and poor at worst.

4. One alternative to the inverted pyramid is narration or story telling. Narration uses scenes,

anecdotes and dialogue to build to a climax. People are prominent in the story, and they areresponsible for the action. The story has a beginning, middle and end. Quotations sound like real

speech. The words and actions of the characters reveal motives.

5. A third story structure, the hourglass, combines some of the best elements of both the inverted

pyramid and the narrative. It consists of three parts: a top, which tells the news quickly; the turn,

a nimble transition; and the narrative, a chronological retelling of events. The hourglass works
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well with police stories, courtroom dramas and other incidents that lend themselves to

chronological narration. The hourglass has several advantages: Readers get the news high in the

story; the writer gets to use storytelling techniques; and it encourages a real ending.

What Is the Lead?

The lede (thats how journalists spell it) is the first paragraph of any news story. Its also themost important. The lede must accomplish several things:

give readers the main points of the story get readers interested in reading the story accomplish both a and b in as few words as possible

Typically editors want ledes to be no longer than 35-40 words. Why so short? Readers want their

news delivered quickly. A short lede does just that.

What Goes in the Lead?

Journalists use the five Ws and the H Who, What, Where, When, Why and How. Whowho is the story about? Whatwhat is the story about? Wherewhere did the event youre writing about occur? Whenwhen did it occur? Whywhy did this happen? Howhow did this happen?

Example:

Lets say youre writing a story about a man who was injured when he fell off a ladder. Here are

your five Ws and H: Whothe man Whathe fell off a ladder while painting Whereat his house Whenyesterday Whythe ladder was rickety Howthe rickety ladder broke

So your lede might go something like this:

A man was injured yesterday when he fell off a rickety ladder that collapsed while he waspainting his house.


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The five Ws

And your success as a journalist depends upon your ability to keep your facts straight. In theearly 1900s,cards were posted in the newsroom of Joseph Pulitzers New York World thatshouted:

ACCURACY! ACCURACY! ACCURACY!

WHO? WHAT? WHERE? WHEN? HOW?

THE FACTSTHE COLORTHE FACTS!Now, you can argue about the number of Ws here.(Are there four? Or five? Does how count

as a W?)But you cant argue that good journalism combines facts and color, as Pulitzer observed. By

color, he meant descriptionand flavor. But in the example at right, well take color evenmore literally:

EXAMPLES OF THE FIVE Ws in a typical story, with facts color-coded to match the wordsin the headline at left: Swimming was prohibited in Cooper Lake Monday after a dangerous

amount of algae was found in the water last week. Polk County health officials declared the lakeoff-limits because of blue-green algae blooms. Ingesting the water can make people ill and killsmall pets.The restrictions include windsurfing and sailboarding but not boating. We hope itwont last longer than two or three weeks, said Robin Fox, the countys director ofenvironmental health.

The who:No, were not talking about that legendary 1960s rock group, The Who although we could be,if we were writing a story about classic rockers. And that story might be popular, too, becausereaders love stories that focus on people: Celebrities. Movers and shakers. The rich and

powerful. The weird and wacky.Reporters generally love writing people profiles, too, because its so fun to interview

fascinating folks. Journalism provides a perfect excuse for letting you ask intimate questions oftotal strangers. When you start assembling facts for even the hardest hard-news story, alwayslook for the who elements:Whos involved? Whos affected? Whos going to benefit?Whos getting screwed? No matter how abstract the topic, its the who angle that keeps it real..

EMPHASIZING THE WHO ANGLE:This lead from the Medford (Ore.) Mail Tribune makes it instantly clear what the storys about:A self-described miser who drank outdated milk, lived in an unheated house and held up hissecond-hand pants with a bungee cord has left a $9 million legacy that will benefit SouthernOregon social service agencies. This feature story centers on a number of whosfilm critics,film characters and film actors: The Online Film Critics Society, an international association ofInternet-based cinema journalists, is sharing its love with the character were supposed to hate.The society has announced its new list celebrating the Top 100 Villains of All Time. The greatestscreen villain, according to the 132 members, is Darth Vader, played by David Prowse andvoiced by James Earl Jones in the original Star Wars trilogy.


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The what:Whats what? Its the stuff that news is about events and ideas, projects and problems,dollars and disasters. And its your job, as a journalist, to monitor and explain the stuff that

matters most to your readers, whether you find it in a classroom, dig it up on a government beator watch it on a football field. Now, heres something you may not have realized before: Thewhat gives news its substance; the who gives news its humanity and personality.Why doesthat matter? Because news stories become dry and dull when they focus too much on, say,meetings and money (the what) and forget to connect them to realpeople (the who).Which isone reason why business reports and scientific papers are so boring: Theyre allwhat and nowho.

EMPHASIZING THE WHAT ANGLE:Notice how this USA Today business story begins with a list of famous whats: The EmpireState Building. The SUV. The Incredible Hulk. The Boeing 747.When it comes to big, no placedoes it better than the USA. But after a 34-year run, one of these icons is starting to see itspopularity fade. The 747 synonymous with huge asthe worlds largest commercial jetliner

is increasingly being pushed out of airline fleets worldwide for being too expensive to operateand too hard to fill. . . . Heres a Toronto Star story about a pop-culture trend: Plastic surgeryreality shows are setting a frightening example, bringing the practice of cosmetic surgery intodisrepute, doctors say. It is barbaric, the whole premise of changing the way they lookcompletely, says Dr. Frank Lista. Itsturned plastic surgery into a freak show.. . .

The when:Some news stories happened in the past (The Beavers lost Friday nights game). Some willhappen in the future (The Beavers play the Warthogs next week). And some go on and on,through the past, present and future (The Beavers are in the midst of a 20-game losing streak.When is it ever going to end?). Timeliness is essential to every story. In this media-saturated, 24-hour cable-network and- online-delivery culture we live in, readers want news thats fresh andimmediate. They depend on you to tell them when events happened, when events will happenand how long theyll last. Being a reporter, then, means constantly keeping your eyes on theclock, for two reasons:1) so you can include the when in every story, and2) so you can finish every story before deadline.

EMPHASIZING THE WHEN ANGLE:This story from the Las Vegas Review-Journal is all about holidays, so it begins: Clark County

public school students dont go to class on Labor Day, Nevada Day, Veterans Day,Thanksgiving, Christmas, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Presidents Day or Memorial Day. In thepast, theyve had to go to school on the Jewish holy day of Yom Kippur, when it fell on a schoolday. This year, the districts 258,000 students will have Monday off because administratorsdeliberately scheduled the first of four teacher training days to coincide with Yom Kippur


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The where:The bigger the news organization, the broader its coverage area. USA Today, for example, callsitself TheNations Newspaper, and it covers the entire world. But most American newspapersare small dailies and weeklies that focus exclusively on their cities, counties or school campuses.Which means the where of every story is crucial: the closer the event, the more relevant it will

be to readers. But explaining the where of a story isnt always easy. Thats why the morecomplex a topic is, the more you need to supplement your reporting with visuals such as a map(Where will they build the new airport?), a diagram (Where will they expand the gym?) or aphoto (Where did police find the body?). THIS TRAVEL STORY from The Oregonian focuseson a specific placeCosta Mayarelying on maps, photos and detailed description to paint apicture for would-be visitors.

EMPHASIZING THE WHERE ANGLE:This story from the Washington Post immediately transports you to a dramatic destination:Fishermen call it the Hell Hole, this place ofwhistling winds and smashing waves in the northAtlantic Ocean. Above a chasm in the Northeast Channel, which runs between the submerged

Georges and Browns banks off Nova Scotia, fishermen catch cod, haddock and other fish withhooks at the ends of long lines, and by dragging nets along the sea floor. It takes guts to fishHell Hole, said Sanford Atwood, a 54-year-old fisherman who has braved Hell Holeselements aboard his boat, the Ocean Legend. . . .

Thy why:Good journalism reports the news; great journalism explains it. And explaining the news requiresasking, over and over, the question why: Why is this law necessary? Why will it cost somuch?And most important of all: Why should we care? When news breaks suddenly, finding theexplanations for events can be difficult. But for most stories, remember, the why is whatmakes the news meaningful.

The how:Good reporters are good teachers. They know how to explain things in a clear, concise way. Andexplaining the how of a story often requires detailed explanation: How will this plan work?How did that prisoner escape? How do I decorate my dog for Halloween? For short stories andnews briefs, the how is often omitted to save space. But readers love a good how-to story,especially in the feature section.

Types of lead

1. Summary lead:

Which comprise of a statement that answers the 5Ws and 1H of a news story.


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2. The effect lead:

Which focuses on the effect or consequences of an event.

3. The contrast lead:

Which portrays contrasts of news event

4. The direct address lead

Which directs its statements at the readers.

5. The question lead:

Which ask a question and provides an answer as well.

6. The cartridge lead

Which presents the gist of an event the fewest words.

7. The double feature lead:

Which contains two separate ideas.

8. The quote lead

Which starts with a quotation.

9. The shirt tail lead:

The shirt tail lead which is a lead broken into two sentences expressing related ideas.

you've done a ton of reporting and dug up a great story. But all your work will be wasted if youwrite a boring lead that won't grab your readers' attention. Follow these tips and you'll be writingknock-their-socks-off leads that will leave your readers wanting more.

1. Writing a Lead - The Basics
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The lead is the first paragraph of any news story. Its also the most important. The lead must givereaders the main points of the story, get readers interested in reading the story and accomplishboth a and b in as few words as possible. Typically editors want leads to be no longer than35-40 words. Readers want their news delivered quickly, and a short lead does just that.

2. Know What To Put In And What To Leave Out

One of the first questions journalism students have when learning to write a lead is what to putin, and what to leave out. Experienced reporters instinctively know what should be included in a

lead. But while crafting a lead can be confusing for the beginner, rest assured that with practice,it will eventually come easily. Generally, the lead should convey the main point of the storywithout getting bogged down in a lot of small details.

3. When Writing a Lead, Listen to Your Gut

Beginners learning to craft a lead often worry about cramming the five W's and the H into thatall-important first sentence. But writing a great lead is really about listening to what your guttells you about what makes a story interesting.

4. Emphasize What's Newsworthy

Sometimes, one particular aspect of a story the who, what, where, when, why or how - will beespecially interesting or newsworthy. Celebrity stories are an example. People die of drugoverdoses all the time, but when it happens to a celebrity its big news. So the who aspect of

the storywho diedmust be emphasized.
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5. Add Context

Leads must be short, but that doesnt mean they cant include context and perspective that addmeaning to a story. Adding just a little context gives the reader a much greater understanding ofwhat the story is about.

6. Keep it Short And To The Point

You've probably heard an editor say that when it comes to news writing, keep it short, sweet andto the point. Some editors call this "writing tight." It means conveying as much information aspossible in as few words as possible. It sounds easy, but if you've spent years writing researchpapers - where the emphasis is often on being longwinded - it can be quite difficult So your leadmight go something like this:

A man was injured yesterday when he fell off a rickety ladder that collapsed while he waspainting his house. That sums up the main points of the story in just 20 words, which is all youneed for the lead.

Inverted pyramid style

According to newspaper folklore, the inverted pyramid was first developed during the Civil War
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by correspondents like these from the New York Herald. Reporters transmitted their battlefieldstories via telegraph, which was expensive and unreliable. Stories could be cut off inmidsentence, before the reporter had gotten around to saying whod won the battle. So frustratededitors started urging writers to file fact-filled summaries of their stories FIRST, then fill in thelengthier details. Before long, the inverted pyramid became the standard structure for most news

storiesThis news writing format summarizes the most important facts at the very start of the story. Itmay seem like an obvious idea to us nowadays getting right to the point when you start astory but it didnt occur to most reporters until midway through the 19th century. Forexample, heres the lead from a Fourth of July story in the Massachusetts Centinel in 1785:Flowery enough for you? By 1898, however, the Chicago Tribune was opening stories this way:What changed? Sentences got shorter. Writing got tighter. And reporters developed a formula forcompressing the most newsworthy factsthe who, what, when, where, whyinto the openingparagraphs of a story.That formula lives on today. Its known as the inverted pyramid.

WHY, IT DOES SORT OF LOOK LIKE AN UPSIDE-DOWNPYRAMID, DOESNT IT?The problem is this:How do you structure a news story so that readers quickly understand whatsgoing on without having to read a mile of text? The answer: Summarize first. Explain later.Whenever you write a story, you have to decide how to stack the facts. One solution, used forcenturies by storytellers, is to stack facts chronologically: first one thing happened, which causedanother thing to happen, which caused something else to happen, and then the princess marriedthe prince. The End. Sure, those types of stories are entertaining, but only if you stick with themfrom start to finishwhich makes them an annoyingly slow, inefficient way to deliver breakingnews.

THE CHRONOLOGICAL STORYOn Sept. 20, Pete Moss bought some marijuana from Lynn C. Doyle. But Mosss dog bit Doylein the leg during the transaction. So Doyle grabbed a shotgun and killed Mosss dog. Moss wasfurious. He got in his car, chased Doyle into an alley and crushed him against a dumpster. Doyledied. The next day, Moss confessed to police that he had run Doyle over. He was arrested andcharged with second-degree murder.Yesterday, Moss pleaded guilty in court. The judgesentenced him to 10 years in prison. On his way to Jackson State Prison, Moss leaped from apolice van and escaped. A search is under way. As the story goes on, the facts become lessessential and the text becomes more cuttable which lets editors trim the story to fit on thepage.


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As the story goes on, the facts become less essential and the text becomes more cuttable which lets editors trim the story to fit on the page. To tell that same story using the invertedpyramid, youd stack the facts in the opposite order, putting the final facts first

THE INVERTED PYRAMID STORY


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The inverted pyramid is a metaphorused by journalists and other writers to illustrate the

placing of the most important information first within a text. It is a common method for

writing news stories and is widely taught to journalism students. The "inverted" orupside-

down "pyramid" can be thought of as a simple triangle with one side drawn horizontally at the

top and the body pointing down. The widest part at the top represents the most substantial,

interesting, and important information the writer means to convey, illustrating that this kind of

material should head the article, while the tapering lower portion illustrates that other material

should follow in order of diminishing importance. It is sometimes called a "summary news lead"

style, or "Bottom Line Up Front" orBLUF.

The format is valued because readers can leave the story at any point and understand it, even if

they don't have all the details. It also allows less important information at the end, where it can

be removed by editors so the article can fit a fixed size - that is, it can be "cut from the bottom"

.Rather than petering out, a story may end with a "kicker"a conclusion, perhaps call to action

which comes afterthe pyramid. This is particularly common in feature.

Other styles are also used in news writing, including the "anecdotal lead," which begins the storywith an eye-catching tale or anecdote rather than the central facts; and the Q&A, or question-and-answer format

A search is under way for a criminal who leaped from a police van outside of Jackson StatePrison yesterday. After pleading guilty to second-degree murder in court, Pete Moss was on his

way to begin serving a 10-year sentence when he escaped. Moss had been arrested Sept. 21 afterconfessing to killing Lynn C. Doyle by running him over in an alley with his car. Moss admittedhe had been furious with Doyle forshooting Mosss dog during a marijuana deal.See the difference? In chronological stories, things slowly get resolved at the end. In the invertedpyramid, things quickly get summed up at the beginning. You start as strong as you can,summarizing whats most newsy then you add additional facts in descending order ofimportance.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metaphorhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Journalisthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/News_stylehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BLUF_(communication)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/News_style#.22Kicker.22http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Inverted_pyramid_2.svghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/News_style#.22Kicker.22http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BLUF_(communication)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/News_stylehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Journalisthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metaphor


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The inverted pyramid helps readers scan news stories quickly and efficiently. But it helps youwrite news stories quickly and efficiently, too. Once you train yourself to organize facts this way,you can apply this formula to almost any breaking news event which is why the invertedpyramid has been a cornerstone of news writing for the past century

HOW A TYPICAL NEWS STORY USES THE INVERTED

PYRAMIDAs weve seen, the main advantages of the inverted pyramid are: u It condenses informationefficiently, so readers can grasp facts quickly. u It allows editors to trim stories from the bottom,since the details in the text become gradually less essential. Now, reporters certainly dont wanttheir stories cut carelessly (orprematurely). But sometimes its necessary. Take this wire story,for instance. It could be cut after the second paragraph. Or the third. Or . . . . VIENNA, AustriaCalifornia Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is getting a birthday gift from his home country: astamp in his honor.The Austrian post office announced on its Web site that the $1.25 stamp will be released on the

actor-turned-politicians birthday, July 30. Schwarzenegger, who will be 57, was born in theAustrian village of Thal near the southern city of Graz. The stamp which showsSchwarzenegger in a suit and tie, with the U.S. and Austrian flags in the background is part ofa collectors series called Austriansliving abroad, the post office said. Schwarzenegger movedto the United States in 1968 to pursue a career as a body builder and movie star. He made hisfirst visit to Austria as California governor last weekend, when he represented the United Statesat the state funeral of President Thomas Klestil.The Associated PressHeres the main point of the story, engagingly summarized. Notice how the lead is crafted tostart with the who of thestory, a name youll recognize: Arnold Schwarzenegger. The secondparagraph elaborates on the birthdaygift mentioned in the lead. It also adds more details about

the when and where. The third paragraph fills in the rest of the what details, describing thestamp and the series its a part of.This final paragraph supplies relevant but less essential background information: a quick recap ofSchwarzeneggers stamp worthy career and his latest Austria connection. Is there more to thisstory? We dont need it. This is enough.

SO SHOULD YOU USE THIS FORMAT FOR EVERY STORY?

WHY WRITING A GOOD LEAD ACTUALLY MATTERS TO

READERSNot every journalist is a fan of the inverted pyramid. Writing coach Don Fry called it the worstform ever invented by the human race for explaining anything in words. And Bruce DeSilva ofThe Hartford Courant once complained that the inverted pyramid remains the Dracula ofjournalism. It keeps rising from its coffin and sneaking into the paper. Whats the problem?Why do some journalists get so honked off at the inverted pyramid? Two reasons, usually: u Itgets repetitive. And stale. And repetitive. Who wants to read a paper where story after storylooks like this?


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THE MOST IMPORTANT FACTSA LESS IMPORTANT FACTAN EVEN DULLER FACT

A BORING FACTZZZ-ZZZ-ZZZ

BLAH, BLAH,BLAH

It doesnt always organize story material logically or engagingly. If youre not careful,complex stories may startwith a bang but end with a whimper as facts stack up and bog down ina muddle in the middle.The solution? Dont get lazy; dont let your writing fallinto a rut. Aswell explain later, you have a wide rangeof options for structuring stories and making complexmaterial reader-friendly.The inverted pyramid is valuable for helping you arrange the facts inbreaking news stories quickly and efficiently.Will you use it on every story? No. But its still anessential tool in every reporters toolbox.To tell that same story using the inverted pyramid, youd stack the facts in the opposite order,

putting the final facts first: See the difference? In chronological stories, things slowly getresolved at the end. In the inverted pyramid, things quickly get summed up at the beginning. Youstart as strong as you can, summarizing whats most newsythen you add additional facts indescending order of importance.The inverted pyramid helps readers scan news stories quickly and efficiently. But it helps youwrite news stories quickly and efficiently, too. Once you train yourself to organize facts this way,you can apply this formula to almost any breaking news event which is why the invertedpyramid has been a cornerstone of news writing for the past century.According to newspaper folklore, the inverted pyramid was first developed during the Civil Warby correspondents like these from the New York Herald. Reporters transmitted their battlefieldstories via telegraph, which was expensive and unreliable. Stories could be cut off in

midsentence, before the reporter had gotten around to saying whod won the battle. So frustratededitors started urging writers to file fact-filled summaries of their stories FIRST, then fill in thelengthier details. Before long, the inverted pyramid became the standard structure for most newsstories.

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