LEARNING GOALS
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To identify the parts of a news report
To identify bias
To identify writing style
To identify audience and purpose
To write an informative news report
WHAT IS A NEWS REPORT?
A news report is a
special form of
writing that follows
a very specific
structure. Today we
will learn the
necessary parts of
a news report and
look at the type of
writing required.
WHY DO WE READ NEWS REPORTS?
• To be informed about our communicate and
the world
• To help us make informed decisions
• To learn
• To be persuaded
• To be entertained
5W 1H
• News Reports answer the 5W 1H
• They are based on facts
• They are to be unbiased
Who, What, Where, When, Why and How
THE ‘INVERTED PYRAMID’ STRUCTURE...
*The most important facts
Lead
-Answers all 5W’s
-Is specific
Body
Conclusion
*Explains how the story
happened
-Includes quotations from speakers
connected to the story
*Least important facts
-No new information
-All questions have been answered
-Concludes with one sentence about the
future of this story
READING A NEWS REPORT
Think about the following:
• Purpose: Why was the article written? To persuade, to
entertains, to educate or to inform.
• Audience: Who is the intended audience? The
language and purpose should help you determine a
specific audience.
• Bias: to be in favour or against one thing, person,
group or event. Not to tell all aspects of a story
BIAS
Ask yourself the following questions to detect bias:
1. Whose point of view does the article focus on?
2. Who are the reporters sources?
3. Are both/all sides of the story told?
4. Is the language loaded to make the reader believe a
specific point of view?
EACH NEWS REPORT MUST ALSO INCLUDE THE
FOLLOWING PARTS:
1) Masthead
2) Headline
3) Byline
4) Dateline
5) Photo
6) Caption
7) Quotation
8) Lead
LET’S TAKE A CLOSER LOOK AT EACH PART…
1) MASTHEAD
• The masthead is
the largest font on
the page
• It states the name
of the newspaper
• Capital letters are
used on all words
2) HEADLINE
• The headline is one
sentence that summarizes
what the news report is
about. The title
• Is written in present tense
Ex. House Passes – CORRECT
House Passed - INCORRECT
• Is the second largest font on
the page
3) BYLINE
- The byline states the
reporters first and last
name
- The byline should be
located before the actual
report
- Capital letters must be
used for each name
4) DATELINE
-States the date
that the story
is published in
print
-Is written in
words not
numerical
form
5) PHOTO
-Needs to be clearly related to
your news report
--Should be appealing and
encourage people to read
the article
6) CAPTION
-Is located directly
beneath the photo
-Tells the reader what is
seen in the photo
-Is written in present or
future tense
CORRECT: “plans to
swim…”
7) QUOTATION(S)
-Are statements given by people connected to
the news event
For example: an eye witness, the investigating
officer, a neighbour etc.
-Must use double quotation marks around the
words that are being spoken and the
punctuation
-Must include the speaker’s first and last
name
-Must explain who the speaker is in relation to
the story
8) LEAD
-The lead is the first sentence
of your news report
-It must include the 5 W’s and
summarize the main ideas
of the report
-The lead must be specific
-Needs to be indented
WHEN WRITING YOUR NEWS REPORT…
-The tone must be factual and informative
NO opinions of the reporter are allowed
-Specific details must be included to make the story
clear
-The language must be formal
NO slang or short forms, it should sound academic
-Write in third person (told from someone who was not
involved)
NO personal pronouns : I, we, me, our
-Include short paragraphs 3-4 sentences in length
How to write a quotation:
Quotation marks
around the spoken
words
After the car accident, Police Chief Joe O’Malley said “Jane
is very lucky to be alive, we have never seen such a
demolished vehicle before.”
Explanation of who
the speaker is and
how they are
connected to the
story
Speaker’s first and
last name
PRACTICE: SEE IF YOU CAN IDENTIFY EACH
PART OF A NEWS REPORT!
Practicing
reading news
reports will help
you later in the
unit when you
read some news
reports!