Today, please turn in your homework (printed article and summary). During period 7, please complete your writing of your first newspaper article (300 word article). See below for details about the project:
NEWSPAPER ARTICLE #1
Golden journalist rule: One inch = about 30-35 words.
Today, complete the article from last class in the lab (period 7) that will be about 8-10 "inches" (300-400 words).
NEWSPAPER ARTICLE #1
Golden journalist rule: One inch = about 30-35 words.
Today, complete the article from last class in the lab (period 7) that will be about 8-10 "inches" (300-400 words).
1. Use the link below to find a topic you would like to write about: [Choose ONLY one of the first 66 topics, please]
2. Make sure you attribute or cite your source(s).
3. Write your 300-400 word article by changing your paper to 2-columns (in other words, the writing should appear as two columns on the paper you hand in). Change your paper layout design to accommodate this.
4. Proofread and turn in when completed to complete this assignment.
3. Write your 300-400 word article by changing your paper to 2-columns (in other words, the writing should appear as two columns on the paper you hand in). Change your paper layout design to accommodate this.
4. Proofread and turn in when completed to complete this assignment.
Try the following template:
- Introduction (1st paragraph) 3 sentences (your hook, your lead-in, and your thesis).
- 2nd paragraph (3 sentences): a hook (topic sentence), an example, and a concluding statement summing up sentence 1 & 2. This should connect somehow to your introduction.
- 3rd paragraph (3-4 sentences): 3-4 sentences connected to the 2nd paragraph to further discussion of the topic/thesis of the article. This might be a good place to put your facts, details, etc.
- 4th paragraph (2 sentences): concluding statement & last, but not least, a restatement of your claim (thesis) and perhaps a reason we should care.
Period 8:
The opening of a news story is called the lead. It is usually one paragraph, and sometimes only one sentence. The typical lead is called a summary lead or straight summary lead, and it summarizes the story; it tells the entire story in miniature as specifically and concisely as possible. The journalist's goal, as a general rule, is to write a clear, fairly short sentence that reveals all the important facts/details of the story--this would include telling the end result of the story as well. A reader should be able to read the lead and be informed about what happened without reading the rest of the story. This is occasionally what happens when people read newspapers and magazines.
A news story essentially has two parts, the lead, which gives the gist of the story, and the body, which adds details which expands on information given in the lead. The body is written in inverted pyramid style (see details below): short paragraphs in descending order of importance.
A summary lead should answer two or more of the 5W's and H: who, what, when, where, why and how. Include those that are important to inform the reader and to tell the story clearly. Usually, however, the lead will include, as a minimum, the who, what and when.
In deciding what to include in the lead, ask yourself: What is the first question a reader would ask? What is the first thing you would tell another person about the situation or event? This is often called the news peg; it is the reason for writing the story. In other words, it is the aspect that makes an event or occurrence newsworthy. See previous post for details about newsworthiness. Your lead might also focus on what journalists call the whammy, which is a fact or facts that make the story unique.
When writing the lead, you should attempt to feature the feature: put the most important aspect or main point first in the paragraph. Grab the reader's attention with the news immediately, without making your reader read through introductory words to find out what happened. This isn't radio or television news, where the reporter may slide into the heart of the story after an introductory sentence or two, which may be necessary so the listener will not miss important information. The written news story needs no such prompt, and if you slide into the story slowly you'll lose your reader. Newspaper readers expect to be informed about what happened immediately--no beating around the bush here.
In general, Leads should:
FEATURE THE FEATURE
Depending on what you decide is most important, any one of the 5W's or H could be featured, which means it is placed first in the opening sentence. Take a look at the following facts:
Who: Washington television station
What: withdrew from a project to construct a 1,200-foot television transmitting tower
When: today
Where: in Silver Spring
Why: declining revenues
How: board of directors decided
The lead might read: A Washington television station announced its withdrawal today from a project to construct a 1,200-foot television transmitting tower in Silver Spring.
Whichever of the 5W's is mentioned first is featured in the lead.
Below are examples of leads which feature the various 5W's & H. The words that make up the "W" that is featured are in boldface type.
EXAMPLES. PLEASE READ & NOTE:
We can learn how to "feature the feature" and avoid other mistakes by looking at examples of poorly written leads. Here are a few examples of the kinds of things to avoid:
How to Write an Effective Lead:
The opening of a news story is called the lead. It is usually one paragraph, and sometimes only one sentence. The typical lead is called a summary lead or straight summary lead, and it summarizes the story; it tells the entire story in miniature as specifically and concisely as possible. The journalist's goal, as a general rule, is to write a clear, fairly short sentence that reveals all the important facts/details of the story--this would include telling the end result of the story as well. A reader should be able to read the lead and be informed about what happened without reading the rest of the story. This is occasionally what happens when people read newspapers and magazines.
A news story essentially has two parts, the lead, which gives the gist of the story, and the body, which adds details which expands on information given in the lead. The body is written in inverted pyramid style (see details below): short paragraphs in descending order of importance.
A summary lead should answer two or more of the 5W's and H: who, what, when, where, why and how. Include those that are important to inform the reader and to tell the story clearly. Usually, however, the lead will include, as a minimum, the who, what and when.
In deciding what to include in the lead, ask yourself: What is the first question a reader would ask? What is the first thing you would tell another person about the situation or event? This is often called the news peg; it is the reason for writing the story. In other words, it is the aspect that makes an event or occurrence newsworthy. See previous post for details about newsworthiness. Your lead might also focus on what journalists call the whammy, which is a fact or facts that make the story unique.
When writing the lead, you should attempt to feature the feature: put the most important aspect or main point first in the paragraph. Grab the reader's attention with the news immediately, without making your reader read through introductory words to find out what happened. This isn't radio or television news, where the reporter may slide into the heart of the story after an introductory sentence or two, which may be necessary so the listener will not miss important information. The written news story needs no such prompt, and if you slide into the story slowly you'll lose your reader. Newspaper readers expect to be informed about what happened immediately--no beating around the bush here.
In general, Leads should:
- open with bright, interesting, colorful nouns and verbs
- be brief (often only 20-30 words)
- be, for the most part, one sentence in length
- be concise, specific, and to the point
- effectively summarize the story
- "feature the feature" (see details above)
- include attribution (the source) if needed for credibility
- give the title or position for any person mentioned
- should not include personal pronouns such as "we" and "you"
- should not include a reporter's opinion. News articles are not an editorial. Ever. Keep your own opinions to yourself. [note: we will be practicing the editorial and review later in this course!]
Depending on what you decide is most important, any one of the 5W's or H could be featured, which means it is placed first in the opening sentence. Take a look at the following facts:
Who: Washington television station
What: withdrew from a project to construct a 1,200-foot television transmitting tower
When: today
Where: in Silver Spring
Why: declining revenues
How: board of directors decided
The lead might read: A Washington television station announced its withdrawal today from a project to construct a 1,200-foot television transmitting tower in Silver Spring.
Whichever of the 5W's is mentioned first is featured in the lead.
- When the who is featured, it is called a name lead. The example above is a name lead. It features the Washington television station.
- When the what is featured, it is called an event lead. Ex. Withdrawal from a project to construct a 1,200-foot television tower in Silver Spring was announced today by a Washington television station. This lead, however, is awkward because it is in passive voice; in other words, the one doing the action (the Washington television station) is at the end of the sentence as the object. Active voice requires that the subject of the sentence is doing the action, which means placing it first in the sentence, as in the original example.
- When the when is featured, it is called a time lead. Ex. Today a Washington television station announced its withdrawal from a project to construct a 1,200-foot television transmitting tower in Silver Spring.
- When the where is featured, it is called a place lead. Ex. A Silver Spring project to construct a 1,200-foot television transmitting tower was canceled today by a Washington television station. This, too, is passive rather than active voice. Avoid writing in the passive voice.
- When the why is featured it is called a cause lead. Ex. Because of declining revenues, a Washington television station announced its withdrawal today from a project to construct a 1,200-foot television transmitting tower in Silver Spring.
- When how is featured, it is called a manner lead. Ex. After a decision by the board of directors of a Washington television station, a project to construct a 1,200-foot television transmitting tower in Silver Spring has been canceled.
Below are examples of leads which feature the various 5W's & H. The words that make up the "W" that is featured are in boldface type.
EXAMPLES. PLEASE READ & NOTE:
WHO (name lead)
- "Many gay and bisexual teens know plenty about AIDS and still don't protect themselves against the disease, two studies indicate."
- "A railroad worker threw a switch too soon and sent an Amtrak passenger train crashing head-on into a parked freight train, killing two people and injuring 44 others, investigators said Saturday." (However, even though this begins with the who, the lead co-features the why, the cause of the train wreck.)
- "Reckless drivers who don't seem to be drunk may well be high on cocaine or marijuana, according to roadside tests that indicate drugs may rival alcohol as a hazard on the highway."
WHAT (event lead)
- Jars and cans tumbled off store shelves and telephone poles swayed when an earthquake that was a "real good shaker" rumbled through Central California yesterday.
- A pack of wild monkeys terrorized a seaside resort town south of Tokyo last week, attacking 30 people and sending eight of them to the hospital with bites. (This also co-features the who or NAME LEAD.)
- A would-be victim turned the tables on a suspected burglar early Sunday, sending him running from her house with a bullet wound to his chest, police said. (This also CO-features the who or NAME LEAD.)
WHY (cause lead)
- With more amateurs cutting wood for use as an alternative to high-priced heating oil, hospitals are coping with an increasing number of injuries due to chain-saw accidents, reported the American College of Surgeons.
- Two railway technicians who overlooked a wheel problem may be charged with negligent manslaughter in Germany's worst rail disaster, a news magazine reported Saturday. (This also co-features the who or NAME LEAD.)
- Louisiana-Pacific Corp. plans to sell seven out-of-state lumber mills and expand production at 17 others in order to boost output by up to 40 percent. (The how in this lead is also the what or EVENT LEAD.)
We can learn how to "feature the feature" and avoid other mistakes by looking at examples of poorly written leads. Here are a few examples of the kinds of things to avoid:
- Ineffective: Sen. Robert Brown spoke to the assembled student body of Oakdale High School at 3 p.m. in the high school gym.
- Who spoke is usually secondary in importance to what was said. And, the mechanical details -- time, date and place -- do not necessarily have to be included in the lead, since the event has already taken place. They can be worked in later, perhaps the second or third paragraph. "Assembled student body" is a burdensome, unnecessary phrase, and "high school" is used twice in one paragraph. Avoid repetition.
- Ineffective: At 3 p.m., March 18, in the high school gym, Robert Brown spoke.
- Time and date (the when angle) are almost never important enough to merit first consideration in the lead, yet they are often used to kick off a speech story. The heart of this story is not included in the lead at all. Note, too, that in this reference the title for Robert Brown (senator) has been omitted. Titles should always be included on the first mention of an individual in the story.
- Ineffective: To further our interest in ecology, Sen. Robert Brown spoke today in the high school gym.
- The 'why' angle is usually not the most important aspect of a story and, therefore, it seldom works as the take-off point for a news story. Also, the use of second person (our), unless it's in a direct quotation, should be avoided in news writing.
- Ineffective: Last Friday, March 18, all of the sophomore, junior and senior students assembled in the gymnasium. After Student Body President Gary Winchman led the students in the flag salute, Vice Principal Barry Jones presented Sen. Robert Brown, who talked about ecology.
- This lead is filled with details that don't belong. It is basically written in chronological order rather than focusing on the "feature." It is dull, too long, and needs severe copy editing. In fact, it needs complete rewriting. It is also more than one sentence; most leads can be written as one smooth, flowing sentence.
- Ineffective: "We must clean up our rivers and streams and get the internal combustion machine out of the automobile and sit hard on the Food and Drug Administration to remove additives from our foods if we are ever going to clean up the air we breathe and make our world a pleasant place to live in again," stated Robert Brown, senator, to the assembled student body of Oakdale High School on Friday, March 18, in the gym at 3 p.m.
- The quotation is too long, covers too many subjects for the lead. In addition, mechanical details such as date and time can be worked in later. Since the event has already happened it is not necessary to tell the readers the place and exact time in the lead. "Stated" is a stuffy, greatly over-used word for attribution. Save it for quoting material from official documents rather than people.
TASK #1: Peruse a copy of The City. Identify and list the title of the article for each of the following typical sections in a newspaper. Try to identify and notice the following types of articles:
TASK #2:
With a partner, choose two articles from an online news source and examine each article's lead. Write the headline, author, and the newspaper or source where you found the article, and write out the lead of the article. Finally, identify the type of lead used and explain whether or not the lead is effective or ineffective and why. Put both names on 1 answer sheet to turn in.
- Letters to the editor
- An editorial
- The feature
- World news
- Local news
- Food/Theater/Film/Entertainment/Sports/Art review(s)
- Classified ads
- Advertisements
- Comic(s) (entertainment)
- Crosswords/jumbles/Sudoku puzzles (entertainment)
TASK #2:
With a partner, choose two articles from an online news source and examine each article's lead. Write the headline, author, and the newspaper or source where you found the article, and write out the lead of the article. Finally, identify the type of lead used and explain whether or not the lead is effective or ineffective and why. Put both names on 1 answer sheet to turn in.
TASK #3
- Examine your own article and identify the type of lead you used. Write the type of lead you used on the copy.
- Revise your article. Revise your article to avoid common or ineffective errors like the models mentioned above. For example: Change passive voice to active voice. Clarify long sentences. Rewrite introductions. Rearrange your structure. Use the inverted pyramid structure to restructure your work. Call this draft your second draft (draft #2) and turn in WITH YOUR ORIGINAL. Note: your original draft should have your identified lead clearly marked.
- Watch and learn more about The inverted pyramid style here at the link.
HOMEWORK: None. Please take a look at the inverted pyramid style for news writing. In general, use this format when writing your own articles.
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