reporting of news

1. NEWS
REPORT

2. NEWS REPORT
 News reports serve the purpose of informing
readers of what is happening in the world
around them.
 News reports have a certain structure that you
need to follow. This structure is sometimes
called the ‘Inverted Pyramid’.

3. INVERTED PYRAMID

4. NEWS REPORT
 News Reports begin with a catchy Headline.
 The lead paragraph informs the reader of the
most important aspects of the story as soon as
possible. The Lead Paragraph is often the only
part of the story that people read.

5. NEWS REPORT
 Use the 5W's 1H rule:
 WHO (is involved)
 WHAT (took place)
 WHEN (did it take place)
 WHERE (did it take place)
 WHY (did it happen)
 HOW (did it happen) only include this if there
is space

6. NEWS REPORT
 The Body of the News Report gives more
details and provides more information about
the Why and How of the story.
 The Tail contains the less important
information which is often omitted by the
newspaper editor if there is not enough space
left in the newspaper.

7. NEWS REPORT
 A news report follows a particular pattern in
reporting as well as editing.
 Every newspaper might have its own style of
writing but a general format followed by all the
newspapers at base levels is systematically
divided into several parts.

8. NEWS REPORT
 To get a deeper understanding, a news story
or report is divided into five parts:
 Headline – The headline tells about what the
story is about
 Byline – It shows who wrote the story
 Lead – It tells the most important facts
answering the 5 W’s
 Body – It contains more information and
details
 Ending – It gives something to think about

9. CHARACTERISTICS OF NEWS
STORIES
 ACCURACY: Accuracy and reliability of reports
must be well sourced, supported by strong
evidence, examined and trusted, clear and
unambiguous. Verified facts must form the of all
news, not rumor and speculation. Facts that have
to be checked: Names, designation, incident
details, statements etc.
 BALANCED: There should not be any bias and it
is the ethical imperative of a reporter to transmit
the news in an impartial manner. It is important to
note that often there are more than two sides to
any story. Therefore, it should be balanced.

10. CHARACTERISTICS OF NEWS
STORIES
 Objectivity: When covering hard news,
reporters should not convey their own feelings,
biases or prejudices in the stories and the
language should be neutral.
 Clarity: There should be no ambiguities. Facts
must be sourced and accurate. Writing clearly
and concisely is one way to capture and retain
interest. It can be done by choosing the words
deliberately, carefully and using grammatically
correct sentences.

11. CHARACTERISTICS OF NEWS
STORIES
 Brevity: One must learn to write a news report
without missing important facts. It does not mean
to write a short story/report but it is to use short
words, short sentences and short paragraphs.
 Attribution: All news reports, with few exceptions
must be sourced. The sources can be identified
as: individual, organization, anonymous etc. Each
source should be attributed.
 Timeliness: One should stress current information-
stories occurring today or yesterday, not several
days or weeks ago and try to report it ahead of
others.

12. CHARACTERISTICS OF NEWS
STORIES
 Prominence: Even routine events can become
news worthy when they involve prominent
individuals or prominent places or locations.
 Proximity: The closer an event is to home, the
more news worthy it becomes.
 Human Interest: Stories that have strong
emotional content are said to have human
interest. Seek out uplifting stories about
people overcoming obstacles.