English in
Journalism
Presented by: Truestar media
Table of Contents
01
02
Engaging verbs
Active and Passive voice
This section encourages the
use of active and engaging
words when writing
Explains to students what is
active and passive voice and
how to change from one to
the other
03
04
Quick editing tips
Fact checking
Short exercises that can help
improve editing skills
This section allows students
to practice fact checking
their work
01
Engaging
verbs
Introduction
Journalist writing should not
be boring. It is important to try
to shy away from words like “is,
are, was, were,” they are all
considered dull words.
Make verbs more specific
One thing that can help
strengthen your writing is to
choose specific verbs, but
make sure they are without
an opinion.
The earthquake was not particularly
strong. The it ticked past the
sixty-second mark, making it longer
than the others that week.
The earth snapped and popped
and rippled.
Active and
Passive voice
Active and Passive voice
Action verbs can use used in two ways: active and passive
Active voice
A sentence has a verb in the active voice when the subject
performs the action.
The catcher caught the ball
Passive voice
A sentence has a verb in the passive voice when the action is
performed on the subject.
The ball was caught by the catcher
Passive Voice
In passive voice, the
subject receives the action
expressed in the verb. The
subject is acted upon.
Examples
The passive voice is
formed by using the past
participle of the verb with
a form of the helping verb
be.
Action
Subject
The ball is caught by the catcher
The ball was caught by the catcher
The ball will be caught by the catcher
How to change from passive to active
Passive voice
The boy was
bitten by the
dog
Active Voice
The dog bit
the boy.
Reflect
A
C
B
Ask yourself,
who is doing
what?
Reasons to use active voice
Active voice is more interesting, more direct and
makes for writing with more personality.
Active voice is shorter and more direct
Active : The waiter dropped the tray of food.
Passive: The tray of food was dropped by the waiter.
Active voice clearly states the relationship
between the subject and action
Passive: Your request for funding has been denied by
the review committee.
Active: The review committee denied your request
for funding.
03
Quick
editing tips
The 10 common errors covered are:
Sentence structure and punctuation
Punctuating quotes
Comma rules
Apostrophes
Semicolons and colons
Dashes and hyphens
Subject/verb agreement
Sentence structure and punctuation
CORRECT THE SENTENCE STRUCTURE AND PUNCTUATION
1. The football squad will ride the team bus
2. Drum major and marching band members will
ride the team bus
3. Band members will ride one bus and the
football squad will ride another bus.
4. All parade participants march to the stadium
and have a pep rally there.
5. In her excitement she forgot some of the
words
Punctuating quotes
CORRECT THE QUOTES
1. Kathleen wing said ninth graders will read the
hate they give at the beginning of the spring
quarter
2. The director announced this years play will be
frozen
3. March 3rd is the deadline for reading the art
of war
4. I subscribe to he digital Truestar magazine
5. Kanye ye west
Comma Rules
Correct the sentences with commas
1. The math teacher whose students scored the highest
got a 20% raise
2. It was an emotional dramatic ending the the play but
the audience was ready to go
3. Beyonce former member of Destiny’s Child is now a
mother of 4
4. The Bulls are made of entirely people who are not from
chicago
5. Nipsey hustle was a compton entrepreneur and rapper
who was an activist for his community
Apostrophes
Add the apostrophes to the sentences
1. He belongs to a 80s rock and roll band
2. The childrens party is set for saturday
3. The first classes response was
predictable, but the second class
success was not expected
4. Nichols intent was the support the
music
5. Michael and Magic legacy is unmatched
Semicolons and colons
Correct the sentences by adding semicolons and colons
1. We were asked the bring art supplies paint brushes ruler poster board
2. We knew what the team needed a hitter
3. For the study session the friends brought pizza popcorn twizzlers
4. Those injured in the accident included Kylie 16 Kendall 17 Kris 25
5. The actress agreed to come back next week to speak to the drama class
her suggestions for the play were horrible
Dashes and hyphens
CORRECT THE SENTENCES BY ADDED DASHES AND HYPHENS
1. When the teacher opened the lab door music to the
amazement of the startled students a huge tiger was
sitting on his desk
2. The late night work session turned into more fun than
work
3. We are worried about the social emotional health of
the youth
4. Her choice was last minute and that upset my plans
5. The 14 year old told her parents she was old enough
to attend the concert on her own.
Subject/verb agreement
CORRECT THE SENTENCES
1. Two student and four teacher attend the
conference together
2. The media are covering every aspect of the
game
3. The number of students cheering in the in the
stands make a difference to the team
4. Everyone in english classes gets an A on the
test
5. In side the boxes is the answer to the riddle
Fact
Checking
Fact checking
An important editing job is
fact-checking. Especially in
this media-ruch world,
sometimes (often) sources get
things wrong and it is
important for a reporter and
media company to maintain its
credibility by making sure the
facts are correct.
As a reporter
●
●
●
●
●
Ask the sources to spell name and title; then
verify what you wrote
Transcribe notes as soon as you leave the
interview
Ask for and check sources when someone gives
data
Ask “How do you know that?”
Verify any claims made
As an editor:
●
●
●
●
●
Check spelling and grammar
Verify any assumptions
If there is something you dont understand ask
someone who does
Check common errors like their/there its/it’s
Are there any doubts? Check back with the
original source
Do you have any
questions?
Thank you!
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