Steps to Writing a Story

Writing a News Story
1. What can I write about? What is news?

On the surface, defining news is a simple task. News is an account of what is happening around us. It may involve current events, new initiatives or ongoing projects or issues. But a newspaper does not only print news of the day. It also prints background analysis, opinions, and human interest stories.

Choosing what's news can be harder.

The reporter chooses stories from the flood of information and events happening in the world and in their community. Stories are normally selected because of their importance, emotion, impact, timeliness and interest. Note: all these factors do NOT have to coincide in each and every story!

2. Identify what kind of a story it is

Hard news (+/- 600 words): This is how journalists refer to news of the day. It is a chronicle of current events/incidents and is the most common news style on the front page of your typical newspaper.

It starts with a summary lead. What happened? Where? When? To/by whom? Why? (The journalist's 5 W's). It must be kept brief and simple, because the purpose of the rest of the story will be to elaborate on this lead.

Keep the writing clean and uncluttered. Most important, give the readers the information they need. If the federal government announced a new major youth initiative yesterday, that's today's hard news.

Soft news (+/-600 words): This is a term for all the news that isn't time-sensitive. Soft news includes profiles of people, programs or organizations. As we discussed earlier, the "lead" is more literary. Most of YPP's news content is soft news.

Feature (+/-1500 words): A news feature takes one step back from the headlines. It explores an issue. News features are less time-sensitive than hard news but no less newsworthy. They can be an effective way to write about complex issues too large for the terse style of a hard news item. Street kids are a perfect example. The stories of their individual lives are full of complexities which can be reflected in a longer piece.

Features are journalism's shopping center. They're full of interesting people, ideas, color, lights, action and energy. Storytelling at its height! A good feature is about the people in your community and their struggles, victories and defeats. A feature takes a certain angle (i.e. Black youth returning to church) and explores it by interviewing the people involved and drawing conclusions from that information. The writer takes an important issue of the day and explains it to the reader through comments from people involved in the story.

Hint: Remember to "balance" your story. Present the opinions of people on both sides of an issue and let the readers make their own decision on who to believe. No personal opinions are allowed. The quotes from the people you interview make up the story. You are the narrator.

Editorial: The editorial expresses an opinion. The editorial page of the newspaper lets the writer comment on issues in the news. All editorials are personal but the topics must still be relevant to the reader.


3. Structure for your article (Typical structure of a hard news story)

The structure of a news story (hard & soft news & features) is simple: a lead and the body.

The lead
One of the most important elements of news writing is the opening paragraph or two of the story. Journalists refer to this as the "lead," and its function is to summarize the story and/or to draw the reader in (depending on whether it is a "hard" or "soft" news story - See below for the difference between these two genres of news stories).
(Hard is all about facts, soft is more literary)

In a hard news story, the lead should be a full summary of what is to follow. It should incorporate as many of the 5 "W's" of journalism (who, what, where, when and why) as possible. (e.g. "Homeless youth marched down Yonge St. in downtown Toronto Wednesday afternoon demanding the municipal government provide emergency shelter during the winter months." - Can you identify the 5 W's in this lead?)

In a soft news story, the lead should present the subject of the story by allusion. This type of opening is somewhat literary. Like a novelist, the role of the writer is to grab the attention of the reader. (e.g. "Until four years ago, Jason W. slept in alleyways...") Once the reader is drawn in, the 5 "W's" should be incorporated into the body of the story, but not necessarily at the very top.

The body
The body of the story involves combining the opinions of the people you interview, some factual data, and a narrative which helps the story flow. A word of caution, however. In this style of writing, you are not allowed to "editorialize" (state your own opinion) in any way.

Remember:

The role of a reporter is to find out what people are thinking of an issue and to report the opinions of different stakeholders of an issue. These comments make up the bulk of the story. The narrative helps to weave the comments into a coherent whole. Hint: Stick to one particular theme throughout the story. You can put in different details but they all have to relate to the original idea of the piece. (e.g. If your story is about black youth and their relationship with the police you DO NOT want to go into details about the life of any one particular youth).

As a reporter, you are the eyes and ears for the readers. You should try to provide some visual details to bring the story to life (this is difficult if you have conducted only phone interviews, which is why face-to-face is best). You should also try to get a feel for the story. Having a feel means getting some understanding of the emotional background of the piece and the people involved in it. Try to get a sense of the characters involved and why they feel the way they do.
(Think about the five senses. Really describe the setting.)

Okay, got it? Let's look at two examples as a way of summarizing the essentials:

Youth are banding together to start an organization. You want to show why are they doing that and the changes are they trying to make in the world. You want to say who they are and the strategies they are using.

An artist is having her first show. Why? What is it that she believes about her art? Is her artistic process rational or from the soul? What does the work look like?




1. Find a topic
dirty dancing, Dawn
2. Find an angle
Why is administration cracking down on it
3. Collect info
Interviews, why, how to handle it, research
4. Gather interviews
Get to people who are involved in the situation
5. Write the story
Tie everything together
6. Edit
yes.
-Lead: most important information
-Limited space... keep it short and sweet.

Law and Ethics

First Amendment:
Speech, press, religion, and petition

The Tinker Standard (Tinker vs. Des Moines School District (1969)):
Student speech cannot be censored as long as it doesn't "materially disrupt class work or involve substantial disorder or invasion of the rights of the others."
-Basically students have those first amendment rights as long as it doesn't disrupt or invade the school's 'rules'.

The Fraser Standard (Bethel School District vs Fraser-1986)
Because school officials have an "interste in teaching students the boundaries of socially apporpriate behavior", they can censor student speech that is vulgar or indecent, even if it does not cause a "material or substantial disruption".
-Schools are prude and easily offended.

The Haezlwood Standard (Hazelwood School District vs, Kuhlmeier-1988)
Censorshop of school-sponsored studnet expression is permissible wen school officials can show that it is "reasonably related to legitimate pedogogical concerns."
-Censor stories in studnet newspaper about teen pregnancy and divorice.

The Frederick Standard (Morse vs. Frederick- June 25,2007)
January 2002, Olympic torch travels through town. Principal Morse cancels school. Senior Frederick unveils banner on the sidewalk across street which reads "Bong Hits 4 Jesus" and the students wer suspended for 10 days.

SUPER BOWL COMMERCIALS 2010

1.
What is the company?
Play Station
Who is the target audience:
Boys (18-30)
What persuasive method used (humor, action, celebrity, human interest, etc.)?
Humor, action
How were camera shots and editing used to enhance the message?
headshots, quick edits, continuity
What is the slogan/message for the company?
"Live in Your World, Play in Ours"
Was the message effective? Why or why not?
No. I'm a girl and I have no interest in any sort of vidoe game.


2
What is the company?
Budweiser
Who is the target audience:
Middle aged football fans
What persuasive method used (humor, action, celebrity, human interest, etc.)?
Humor, popular interest
How were camera shots and editing used to enhance the message?
Replay
What is the slogan/message for the company?
No slogan
Was the message effective? Why or why not?
No, I'm not a middle aged football fan, and I don't drink.


3
What is the company?
Chrysler
Who is the target audience:
"Women!!!! 100 PERCENT!"- Mr. Krebs
What persuasive method used (humor, action, celebrity, human interest, etc.)?
Celebrity
How were camera shots and editing used to enhance the message?
Sleek shots, black and white, looks clean
What is the slogan/message for the company?
Drive and Love
Was the message effective? Why or why not?
Not really, not a fan of the Deon.

4
What is the company?
Pepsi
Who is the target audience:
Men and women (teens-80)
What persuasive method used (humor, action, celebrity, human interest, etc.)?
Humor, Celebrity
How were camera shots and editing used to enhance the message?
Really really technical edits and snaps
What is the slogan/message for the company?
Its a Twist on a Great Thing
Was the message effective? Why or why not?


5
What is the company?
Fed Ex
Who is the target audience:
Anyone whose seen Cast Away
What persuasive method used (humor, action, celebrity, human interest, etc.)?
Humor
How were camera shots and editing used to enhance the message?
Nothing special, maybe some close ups.
What is the slogan/message for the company?
No slogan.
Was the message effective? Why or why not?
Yes, definitely. I will use Fed Ex anytime I need to send a package.

6
What is the company?
Dodge
Who is the target audience:
Gross men.
What persuasive method used (humor, action, celebrity, human interest, etc.)?
Humor, gruesome
How were camera shots and editing used to enhance the message?
Close ups
What is the slogan/message for the company?
"Grab Life By The Horns"
Was the message effective? Why or why not?
Very. Never going to buy a truck.

7
What is the company?
Gatorade
Who is the target audience:
People intersted in basketball/Michael Jordan
What persuasive method used (humor, action, celebrity, human interest, etc.)?
Celebrity/Professional athlete
How were camera shots and editing used to enhance the message?
Grungy, dark
What is the slogan/message for the company?
"Is It In You?"
Was the message effective? Why or why not?
Eh, not really. I like gatorade but I was not included in the target audience.

8
What is the company?
ESPN Sports Center
Who is the target audience:
Men (15-50)
What persuasive method used (humor, action, celebrity, human interest, etc.)?
Humor, Celebrity
How were camera shots and editing used to enhance the message?
Nothing special.
What is the slogan/message for the company?
"This is Sports Center"
Was the message effective? Why or why not?

9.
What is the company?
H&R Block
Who is the target audiene?
People with an income
What persuasive method used?'
Humor, celebrity
How were camera shots and editing used to enhance the message?
Locker room, brightness
What is the slogan for the company?
"Double Check"
Was the message effective?
No, not interested.


10.
What is the company?
budlight
Who is the target audience?
Middle aged men and women
What persuasive methods were used?
humor
How did camera shots enhance the message?
Bar scene
Slogan
Make it a Bud Light
Was the message effective?
To those who drink, I imagine so.


11.
What is the company?
Visa
Who is the target audience?
Sports fans
What persuasive methods were used?
celebrities, humor
How did camera shots enhance the message?
Camera pointing up, pointing down from different view points
Slogan
"Its Everywhere You Want To Be"
Was the message effective?
Not really.

For reading time today: http://www.cnn.com

Definition:
Define “Journalism” in 1-3 sentences.
The telling of of current events that are news-worthy via Internet, broadcast (television and radio) and print (magazines and newspaper).


List and describe the six criteria of newsworthiness.

TITLE DESCRIPTION EXAMPLE
1 Timeliness; issues that are happening now, such as the earthquake in Hiati.

2. Significance; events that impact many people. The more people that are impacted in an event, the more significant it is. Examples could be an election, the super bowl, a natural disaster etc.

3. Unusualness; people care about things that are unordinary. People want to hear about things that are interesting and unusual. "Man Bites Dog".

4. Prominance; Important or famous people attract attention to the majority of society. Noone really cares if Sarah Wiley goes to college, but Mary Kate and Ashley made big news when they attended NYU.

5. Proximity; the location of an event, we care about things that are close to us. An example of this would be the weather, traffic, or special events.

6. Human Interest Story; "feel good", positive stories.




What are the advantages of print journalism?
1. You have the control over when you read it

2. What you read

3.


What are the advantages of broadcast journalism?

1. Video is much more engaging to the audience

2. The news is live, and gives the reader knowledge of whats happening right now.

3. Television is much more accesssible than some other forms of journalism because its virtually everywhere and easy to access.


Why has online journalism (convergent media) become so popular?
Online journalism is very accessible. People have control over when they read it, where they read it and how. Today, we live in a "we want it now" society. People are somewhat more demanding of the information they want and the easiest way to get it is to read online about what they want when they want to read it.