2. Producing information: writing a
news piece “Literature is the art of writing something
that will be read twice; journalism what will
be grasped at once. Cyril Vernon Connolly,
staff writer at The New Statesman and head
critic at The Sunday Times
In other words…
writing a news piece is different from writing a
story. There are rules regarding length & order. Be
clear, be concise, & place the info where it is
supposed to go
3. When you tell a story do you...?
a) Tell what happened in order of how they happened
b) Start at the end
c) Start at the middle
Journalists do not tell stories in chronological order
They tell stories in the ORDER OF THE IMPORTANCE OF THE INFORMATION
Producing information: writing a
news piece
4. The inverted pyramid is a metaphor used
by journalists and other writers to illustrate how
information should be prioritized and structured
in a text (e.g., a news report). It is a common
method for writing news stories(and has
adaptability to other kinds of texts, e.g., blogs and
editorial columns).
THE LEDE - The
opening line of the
story containing the
most important info
Inverted pyramid style
5. -Most people don’t finish articles, especially long ones.
-This trend is even more evident in web and online reading.
So…
-Start strong and deliver most of the info at the beginning.
-Those who are more interested can find additional details
at the end
Why use the pyramid?
How people read
6. Inverted pyramid style
LET’S APPLY THE INVERTED PYRAMID:
Let’s suppose the City Police Department reports that an accident
occurred at 2:30 a.m. today. This is the information the police provided
to the press:
A car driven by Joe White, 29 years old, hit a curb on Main Street,
smashed into a tree and overturned. Police say White was speeding and
lost control of his car. He was hospitalized for minor injuries.
A passenger in White’s car was killed. The passenger was Amanda
Smith, 22 years old. She was pronounced dead at 2:45 a.m.
“We are conducting toxicology tests to determine if alcohol was
involved,” Police Chief Jack Russell said.
What are the
5Ws?
7. 1st: WHAT is the most important outcome?
Most important outcome: A woman died. THIS fact is even more important than the
accident itself
When: 2:30 a.m. today
Where: On Main Street
Why: The driver, Joe White was speeding and lost control
How: The car hit a curb, smashed into a tree and overturned
Inverted pyramid style
8. Where did the information come from?
All of the information must be tied directly to the source where it came
from: THE POLICE.
This is called attribution.
Inverted pyramid style
9. SO… put it all together in a lede:
A 22-year-old passenger (what) was killed early today (when) after a
car hit a curb, crashed into a tree and overturned (how) on Main
Street. (where)
Inverted pyramid style
10. Inverted pyramid style
The rest of the story would look like this:
According to the City Police Department, the driver
Joe White, 29, was speeding and lost control of his
car, causing the death of Amanda White. (Why the
news happened and who was the source)
11. Inverted pyramid style
The last part of the story as follows:
White was hospitalized for minor injuries. (This
covers an additional provided fact.) “We are
conducting toxicology tests to determine if alcohol
was involved,” Police Chief Jack Russell said. (This
includes a quote from a source and attribution)
12. Inverted pyramid style
THE WHOLE STORY LOOKS LIKE THIS:
A 22-year-old passenger (what) was killed early today (when) after a car hit a curb,
crashed into a tree and overturned (how) on Main Street. (where)
According to the City Police Department, the driver Joe White, 29, was
speeding and lost control of his car, causing the death of Amanda White. (Why the
news happened and who was the source)
White was hospitalized for minor injuries. (This covers an additional
provided fact.) “We are conducting toxicology tests to determine if alcohol was
involved,” Police Chief Jack Russell said. (This includes a quote from a source and
attribution)
13. Headlines: the only rule
“Never write a headline longer
than a newsboy can shout”. Bill
Rising, Chicago Daily News
What would YOUR headline be for the piece
in the previous slide?
15. Producing information: writing a
news piece
Final activity: let’s make a
newsletter!
Newsletter templates
http://www.creativebloq.com/career/10-free-newsletter-templates-your-design-work-11410393
Newspaper templates
http://www.educatorstechnology.com/2013/03/wonderful-free-templates-to-create.html?m=1
16. Producing information: writing a
news piece
Final activity: let’s make a
newsletter!
Workshop blog
https://runnymedejournalismworkshop.wordpress.com/
User: runnymedeworkshop@mail.com
Password: Workshop1
17. Producing information: writing a
news piece
EXTRA MATERIALS:
http://www.mediacollege.com/journalism/news/write-stories.html
CREDITS:
Inverted pyramid example & worksheets:
http://www.schooljournalism.org/
