ICFJ Professional Development Series
Unit One: Getting the Story
The Basics of Professional Journalism:
Reporting, Writing and Editing
Participant’s Manual and Workbook
About the International Center for Journalists
The International Center for Journalists, a non-profit, professional organization,
promotes quality journalism worldwide in the belief that independent, vigorous
media are crucial in improving the human condition.
Since 1984, the International Center for Journalists has worked directly with
more than 50,000 journalists from 176 countries. Aiming to raise the standards of
journalism, ICFJ offers hands-on training, workshops, seminars, fellowships and
international exchanges to reporters and media managers around the globe.
At ICFJ, we believe in the power of journalism to promote positive change.
Contents
5
To the Participant
• Introduction
• Use of this Workbook
9
Overview: Definitions and Standards
• Definitions
• Professional Standards
15
Part I: Reporting
•
•
•
•
•
•
39
Part II: Writing
•
•
•
•
•
49
Overview
The Press Release
Getting Organized
Field Work
Capturing INformation
The Use of Documents
Overview
Approaches to News Writing
The Lead/Intro
Sourcing
Quotations
Part III: Editing
• Overview
• Desk Work: The Editor’s Three Hats
• Headlines and Captions
90
Acknowledgments
Getting the Story
International Center for Journalists
To the Participant
To the Participant
Introduction
This workbook contains advice and practice material for use with the ICFJ
videotape/text training program Getting the Story: The Basics of Professional
Journalism. The videotape shows various activities being performed in the
gathering and processing of news. The 39-minute video has three parts. Each
of this Workbook’s three parts corresponds to a part in the videotape. The
workbook is meant to be used in a classroom situation or merely as an individual
supplement to the videotape.
If you are taking a course with an instructor, your instructor may have you view
one part of the videotape, and then read a matching segment in this Workbook,
or you may view the entire film before turning to the workbook. Your instructor
also will discuss important points with you in class, and from time to time give
you quizzes and exams.
5
Getting the Story
The training will be augmented with
practical exercises. Your instructor
will rate your progress in terms of test
scores and performance in these
exercises. You should fill in the form
on the title page of your Workbook
before proceeding.
Program Objectives
In this program you will be taught:
• Reporting
• Writing
• Editing
Each skill plays a role in the
composition of accurate, thorough,
fair, and timely reports of events.
Getting the Story features a young
reporter on a daily newspaper, but the
process is generally the same for all
forms of news media – newspapers,
radio television and news magazines.
The reporter first collects facts and
checks them. Then more information
is obtained through research. Next,
International Center for Journalists
the reporter writes the story. Finally,
the story is edited.
At the completion of this training, you
will know how to gather facts; how to
organize facts into a story people will
read; and about some of the other
steps in getting a story into print or on
the air.
Use of this Workbook
This Student Workbook is designed
with space for you to enter important
notes — helpful hints and cautions
from the instructor, and your own
notes. The units on writing and
editing include practice material
provided by professional news
organizations and the professional
training staff for the Center for Foreign
Journalists. The Workbook is your
record of the training experience. Use
the Workbook, and keep it for future
reference.
-- The Editor
To the Participant
7
Getting the Story
International Center for Journalists
Overview: Definitions and Standards
Overview: Definitions and Standards
Definitions
Consider for a moment an important preliminary question: What Is News?
Since most people find it easier to recognize news when the see it or hear it than
try to define it, lets look at some of the things experts say about news.
Definition No. 1:
A popular journalism textbook says news stories generally are about:
• Events that have impact of many people,
• Events that describe unusual or exceptional situations,
• Events concerning well-known or prominent people.
9
Getting the Story
Exercise: Definitions of
News
Can you think of other definitions of
news not covered here?
List them below.
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
_____________________________
International Center for Journalists
The author says four other elements
will heighten the news value of a story
or event. They are:
• Conflict, Proximity, Timeliness, and
Currency
Definition No. 2:
The former editor of a leading
newspaper defines news as
“something you didn’t know before,
had forgotten or didn’t understand.
Definition No. 3:
The manager of a survey of
newspaper readers and television
viewers says: “news events usually
have a large impact only when they
are very dramatic or touch audiences
in a personal way.”
But moments of high drama are rare,
and they do not hold audience interest
long because the average person
can’t keep the cast of characters
straight. The story soon becomes too
complex to follow.
Definition No. 4:
My perception that something is news
depends also on who I am and where
I am. A mass audience includes
young people and old; rich, poor and
middle-income; urban dwellers and
farmers. Each group has different
loyalties, memberships and lifestyles.
Their differences give each of them
different news interests.
One use of the “five Ws and H” in
Getting the Story – the Who? What?
Where? When? Why? And How? – is
to make reporters, writers and editors
think about these differences as they
go about their work.
Overview: Definitions and Standards
Exercise: What Makes a Story News?
Consult recent back issues of a leading newspaper or news magazine
and list the top 10 news stories in your region for a recent period.
1. ______________________________________________________
2. ______________________________________________________
3. ______________________________________________________
4. ______________________________________________________
5. ______________________________________________________
6. ______________________________________________________
7. ______________________________________________________
8. ______________________________________________________
9. ______________________________________________________
10. ______________________________________________________
Identify and be able to discuss elements of these stories that make them
important as news. How did you choose the 10 top stories?
B. Explain briefly why the housing project in the video story might be
interesting news. Use the space provided on the next pages to develop
your answer.
11
Getting the Story
Professional Standards
There are some things that journalists
around the world seem to share. The
best of journalists, regardless of
culture or political system, speak a
common language, and many of them
recognize a set of common standards
by which to judge professional work.
Important among these standards are
balance, accuracy and fairness.
These marks of professionalism are
known and respected by good
journalists everywhere.
International Center for Journalists
Exercise: Professional
Standards
List on the opposite page some of
the most important professional
standards highlighted in the video
story.
Overview: Definitions and Standards
Notes
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
13
Getting the Story
International Center for Journalists
Part I: Reporting
Part I: Reporting
Overview:
News stories are composed of facts obtained from direct observation, other
human sources and documents.
• Most news is not witnessed first-hand by those who report it.
• Reporters are “told” about stories by witnesses, experts and participants in
events.
• That information may be reinforced by – or checked against – reports,
documents, library references, public records.
15
Getting the Story
Exercise: Sources
What are the main sources for news in your area?
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
The Press Release: A Basic
Tool
Sample Press Release
News stories usually are found in city
halls, police stations, courts or
legislatures – places where public
business is transacted and conflicts
between individuals and groups are
mediated. But there are many other
story sources. Large private
institutions, science publications,
museums, archives and educational
centers are just a few. A press
release issued by any of these
sources will often lead an important
story.
In the film, when we first see the
press release on the screen, it has
served one purpose already: It has
spurred the editor into thinking about
a government housing project. The
editor gets lots of press releases and
uses them every day. There’s a good
reason: He doesn’t have a staff big
enough to cover local affairs,
business and industry, science,
education and particularly
government.
International Center for Journalists
Part I: Reporting
Texts of the new housing project
release:
For Immediate Release
From:
Department of
Public Works
Contact:
Simon Fuller
Tel: 34-567
NEW HOUSING PROJECT
The land has been secured and construction has begun
on a new government housing project in the River District
of the capital Public Works Minister Samuel Edwards
announced Thursday.
“This will fill a pressing need for our citizens and will put us
over the planned quota for new housing starts in this fiveyear period,” Mr. Edwards said.
Plans call for 50 houses in the River District project, he
reported, adding that the first house should be ready for
occupancy by Jan. 1.
The minister said that low-interest loans will be made to
the most needy families to buy houses, once they are
ready for occupancy.
17
Getting the Story
Handling a Press Release
Deciding what is news and how
important it may be to the reader is
the newspaper’s job. In making that
assessment, most journalists will:
• Check the release for accuracy and
for “the other side of the story.” The
facts may be accurate but not
complete.
• Look for ways to be interesting. A
story with a human angle will get a
lot more attention than one that
reads like an interoffice memo from
one bureaucrat to another.
• In handling a press release many
journalists use a checklist like the
one the reporter uses in Getting the
Story. This rule holds that a news
story is not complete unless it
answers the questions: Who?
What? When? Where? – and,
when at all possible – Why? And
How?
• The larger principle, however, is that
a news story is always better when
the reporter uses more than one
source to develop it.
International Center for Journalists
Example (Press Release)
In an effort to help the people cope
with the spiraling rate of inflation in
the country, the government
yesterday decided on a wage
increase of between five and 10
percent across the board.
Economy Minister Samuel Shaw said
the increase would particularly
benefit wage-earners in the
5,000-15,000 income bracket. Those
with the higher incomes would
benefit less, the minister said. He
said the bill will be shared equally
between the government and private
sector employers.
“In this way,” the minister added, “all
workers and employees will have
more income to buy the goods and
services they need.”
Part I: Reporting
Example (News Story)
The government announced yesterday a 5-10 percent across-the-board wage
increase which it hoped would enable people to cope with the spiraling rate
of inflation. Economy Minister Samuel Shaw said the increase would
particularly benefit wage-earners in the 5,000-15,000 income bracket. Those
with higher incomes would benefit less, the minister said. He said the bill
will be shared equally between the government and private sector employers.
The decision triggered criticism from both private sector employers and
trade union leaders. One independent economic analyst also criticized the
decision, arguing that this was not the way to fight inflation.
A spokesman for the General Federation of Trade Unions said, “When
inflation is skyrocketing at the rate of 300 percent a year, a five or 10 percent
wage increase is not going to make much difference.” He added, “There is
no doubt that manufacturers and employers will pass the wage increase on
to the consumers of their products, thus neutralizing the effect the
government has hoped for.”
A statement by the Association of Steel Manufacturers said, “There is no way
the industry can afford to raise wages by 10 percent unless the government
also agrees on measures to protect the industry against competitive steel
imports.”
Economics professor Dean Stevens at the University of Good Hope
commented on the government’s decision yesterday, “This is not the way to
fight inflation. The government must deal with the fundamental issue of
interest rates and savings in order to encourage investment.”
19
Getting the Story
Exercises: Press Releases
Press releases are starting points. In these examples, list the important
facts or issues, say how you’d use them to develop a story and indicate key
information missing from the release:
1. You work for a newspaper in Lomé, Togo, where the 16-nation Economic
Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is meeting. Its final
communiqué includes this statement:
“The Authority adopted a resolution strongly condemning the dumping of
nuclear and other industrial waste, and urged each ECOWAS member state
to take all possible measures to prevent such disposal of industrial waste.
By this resolution all 16 governments in West Africa undertake to enact laws
in their respective countries to make it a criminal offense for any person,
group, firm or organization to participate in any act that facilitates the
dumping of nuclear or industrial waste and to prevent the export of these
waste materials to other countries.”
2. You are a reporter on a newspaper in Sao Paulo, Brazil, which is a major
world producer of soybeans. It’s early summer and today you are writing
the paper’s weather story. Your source material includes a long-range
government weather summary for the Western Hemisphere which predicts
generally good growing conditions in the southern half but serious drought in
the North, centered in the southern and southwestern United States.
3. You are on the staff of a newspaper in Bangkok, Thailand, a leading
exporter of textiles. Thailand is also a source of opium poppies and
cannabis for the illegal drug trade. You receive a press release for the U.S.
Embassy saying the American Congress has just passed a law embargoing
imports from all nations determined to be involved in illegal drug trafficking.
4. Headquarters for the U.N.’s International Year of Shelter for the
Homeless, located in Nairobi, Kenya, distributes a press release praising the
private Undugu Society of Kenya for its work with three low-income villages
to upgrade homes made from cardboard, branches and plastic sheeting into
more durable mud and wattle dwellings. The release calls the Nairobi
project a model for Third World cities. It adds, however, that “unfortunately,
these people still lack secure tenure to the land, and may be subject to
eviction by the authorities or because of land development interests.”
International Center for Journalists
Part I: Reporting
Notes
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
21
Getting the Story
Getting Organized
Homework:
Reporter John Blake is
understandably wary of beginning his
filed investigation without preparing
himself. Just as one wouldn’t leave
home with shoes, the reporter doesn’t
start an assignment without doing
some homework. You can do quite a
lot of preparation without leaving the
newspaper office – particularly if you
need answers to questions like these:
• The correct spelling of a public
official’s name.
• A city’s population.
• Rates of literacy, or the average
years of school completed. The
number of marriages, or divorces.
• Membership of a religious group, or
the names of its leaders. The size
of an ethnic community.
If the information is not available in the
newspaper files, it might be found in
published reports or reference books.
You can and should also search other
trusted web sites to look for additional
information. Be careful, however there have been many cases when
one journalist on deadline misspelled
someone’s name, and after seeing
that story online dozens of other
journalists followed suit. A good world
International Center for Journalists
almanac can be very useful. Excellent
allies too are dictionaries, city
directories, atlases and road maps,
telephone directories and
encyclopedias. Statistical reports and
summaries published by government
agencies are good information
sources as well. The final source on
the spelling of a person’s name is the
person himself. Even a small
newspaper can maintain a modest
reference library, but every reporter’s
personal equipment probably should
include these tools:
• Dictionary
• Grammar book
• Almanac or Encyclopedia
• Atlas and road maps
Most newsrooms now also maintain
an Intranet for their office staff. An
Intranet is a closed website that offers
resources (staff directories,
sourcebooks, links to sites such as
Lexis, etc.) for everyone. Typically,
the site is locked with a username and
password so that the public can’t gain
entry.
Don’t limit yourself to library and
documentary sources. Talk to people
who know something about the
subject you are looking into – for
example academics, or people in
business or politics.
Part I: Reporting
Notes
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
23
Getting the Story
Exercises: The Use of References
1. Senegal’s former leader Leopold Senghor has just died. How would you
determine how old he was, and what he did after retirement.
2. A jet passenger aircraft has crashed in a filed outside the capital shortly
after takeoff. Reports from the scene indicate no survivors but these are early
reports and you cannot learn from the airline how many passengers and crew
members aboard.
How would you determine the probable number of fatalities if the flight
carried a full crew and a full passenger load? You know the make and model
of the aircraft.
3. How would you compile a list of the 10 worst air disasters in terms of loss
of life in civil aviation history?
4. A film maker from your country has just won a Hollywood Academy Award
(Oscar) for best foreign film. Say how you would identify any previous Oscarwinners in (1)your country, or (2)your region.
5. Identify, by nationality and claim to fame, the following: (a)Mohandas K.
Gandhi; (b)Michael Jackson; (c)Nicolae Ceausescu; (d)Shusaku Endo;
(e)Simon Bolivar; (f)Kwame Nkrumah; (g)Mother Theresa.
6. Define the following acronyms: UNESCO, GNP, OPEC, IMF, SEAT, OAS,
EC, COMECON.
7. Describe each of the following in a short phrase: (a) Third World; (b)
Bhagavad-Gita; (c) Holocaust; (d) Islam: (e) Iron Curtain: (f) Zionism: (g)
Mujaheddin; (h) the Bible
International Center for Journalists
Part I: Reporting
Notes
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
25
Getting the Story
Communication
Equipment
Good Communication between editor
and reporter is essential.
Before leaving, make sure you have a
notebook and a pen or pencil. If you
use a tape recorder, make certain it
has working batteries.
• The reporter must know what kind of
a story is required, including length
and when it is expected.
• An editor needs to have confidence
that the reporter is absolutely
accurate at all times, completely
loyal to the newspaper and alert for
the unexpected.
• The reporter must tell the editor
promptly when facts develop that
may influence story emphasis – or
suggest that there’s no story.
Editors don’t like surprises.
Rule: Keep the desk aware of what
you’re doing and don’t hesitate to
ask questions.
Exercise: Communication
List on the opposite page some
reasons why it might be important
for a reporter to consult with the
editor before and during the
reporting process.
International Center for Journalists
Exercise: Equipment
What other supplies/equipment
would be useful to carry?
Part I: Reporting
Notes
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
27
Getting the Story
Field Work
Interviewing
It helps to address people with
respect, but a successful interview
also requires knowing what you’re
after and getting to the point quickly.
An official who grants an interview
takes time out from other work, so
don’t waste it. Seasoned interviewers
also recommend the following:
• Identify yourself clearly at the start
of any news encounter.
• Be a good listener: You don’t learn
anything when you’re doing the
talking. Don’t argue with the subject
and keep your opinions to yourself.
• Don’t fear to ask a difficult or
embarrassing question. Be
courteous but be persistent too.
• Make sure gaps are filled. If an
answer isn’t clear, say so. Be alert
as the interview progresses for
questions you had not considered.
Some people won’t stop talking,
offer you useless information or
merely seek publicity. Others dodge
your questions or turn hostile.
Remain civil. Be patient but
persistent. Restate your question.
• Don’t volunteer to let the official
speak off the record. If you must, let
the source request it. The general
rule is: Assume that everything is on
the record.
• End the interview gracefully. Inquire
if you’ve neglected to ask an
important question. Make sure you
can call back if further information is
needed.
International Center for Journalists
Exercise: Conducting the
Interview
Which of these guidelines were
violated by Reporter John Blake?
List them on the opposite page.
The telephone
In the United States, there are three
telephones for every four people,
including babies. Some visitors are
surprised that Americans conduct so
much business on the telephone, and
one reason for this is the sheer
number of telephones. But as
availability grows so too will the use of
the telephone become more of a habit
worldwide. Still, a sense of ease
between speakers is more difficult to
achieve on the telephone than face-toface. That’s even more reason to
identify yourself clearly and get to the
point quickly. But make sure you have
the right person. That’s critical too.
Part I: Reporting
Notes
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
29
Getting the Story
Interviewing
Exercises: Controlling the Interview
1. A reporter asks the interior minister, Why did you dismiss the city’s police
chief? The Minister replies, John and I always had a good working
relationship. We had our disagreements but we always put the public interest
above everything else.
Is there something missing from this response? What should the
reporter do about it?
2. A reporter asks the trade minister from a neighboring country, Obviously,
we have a large deficit in the trade balance with your country. Are you going
to discuss this issue during your visit here? Answer: Yes. Followup question:
Do you see any serious obstacles to reaching an agreement on that?
Answer: Not serious obstacles.
Is there a problem with these questions? How would you reframe
them?
International Center for Journalists
Part I: Reporting
Notes
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
31
Getting the Story
Capturing Information
Audio Recorders
It’s unethical to record anyone without
first telling them (for example, on the
telephone). It may not land you in
court, but it’s not good practice and
can cause trouble. It can also be
counter-productive. Remember how
John Blake offended the official by
turning on the recorder without asking.
With permission, tape or other digital
recorders (audio or video) may free
you to concentrate on your subject,
keep eye contact and maintain control
over an interview. But recorders
break down, run out of tape or
batteries and can fall apart if dropped.
It’s a good rule of thumb to always
carry a set or two of fresh batteries as
well as a backup device if the
information you’re set to record is
critical.
Also, some people are intimidated by
recorders and won’t talk when they’re
running. It’s therefore a good idea to
take notes as well.
Exercise: Tape Recording
There are advantages and
disadvantages to conducting an
interview with a tape recorder. Can
you think of the main pros and
cons?
International Center for Journalists
Note-Taking
Short hand skills have long been
considered basic for journalists. Do
you have a short-handed system? If
you don’t care to learn a system, you
might want to improvise your own –
but be sure you can decipher you own
notes. Here are some examples:
I’d lv 2 vst ur ctry whc Im tld is btful
Translation: I would love to visit your
country which I’m told is beautiful.
T trps mvd in 2s twd t trng fld frg
thr mch gns in t ar as tm cam fr thr
d shphsing exrse.
Translation: The troops moved in pairs
toward the training field firing their
machine guns in the air as time came
for their second sharp-shooting
exercise.
Part I: Reporting
Notes
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
33
Getting the Story
Noticing Detail
It’s always better to show than to tell.
The mayor’s face reddened as he
clenched his fists is better than The
mayor, visibly angered … Good
journalists notice detail and use it.
Reporter Hugh Mulligan writes down
everything that strikes his senses –
the color of leaves, the presence of
clouds in the sky, the air temperature.
Detail may give reporting some
necessary credibility. Washington
Post reporters Bob Woodward and
Carl Bernstein used neither a
notebook nor a tape recorder in many
of their Watergate interviews. What
are the risks of such a practice, and
how do you avoid them?
International Center for Journalists
Exercises: Recalling
Detail
1. Have a friend read to you for
long stretches and then sit down
afterwards and write down what you
remember. Repeat it and watch
your recall of detail get better.
2. Leaving your notebook in your
pocket, observe a criminal or civil
trial and then, during the recesses,
reconstruct the testimony outside
the courtroom. If there’s news
coverage of the trial, compare it to
yours.
3. Concentrate now on the
atmosphere as well as the words.
Interview someone you don’t know
well in the person’s home when you
know others will be present. Use
neither notebook nor tape recorder
but immediately after write down
what you recall. Besides answers
to your questions, note all that you
can remember about the
surroundings.
Part I: Reporting
Notes
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
35
Getting the Story
The Use of Documents
In Getting the Story, a news source
tells the reporter the government
cheated the original land-owners. The
editor is skeptical and has the reporter
re-check the facts. Don’t be too
hurried, he says. “Take tomorrow too.
Just get it right.”
Later, when asked about the charge,
the Public Works official suggests a
check of land records for other land
sales in the vicinity. The reporter
learns that prices for similar parcels
compare with the one paid for this
land.
Before publishing a story that
challenges some person’s or agency’s
integrity, most editors will demand to
see physical evidence – vouchers,
audits, or transcripts – to back up the
human testimony that news sources
give to the reporter.
Experienced journalists prefer “direct
evidence” – a tangible document –
over “direct testimony,” since the latter
is human and therefore more
susceptible to bias.
The oral statement alone is often
unreliable, even when the witness has
no person interest, warns a veteran
journalist. “The chances for error
increase geometrically as your source
is removed one, two, or three steps
from the event.”
Human News Sources
The section entitled “Professional
Standards” briefly mentions the
journalist’s basic commitments to
balance, accuracy and fairness. The
test of these ethical principles often
comes in relationships with news
International Center for Journalists
sources. Although there is an ethical
obligation to protect news sources,
sometimes it is the reporter who
seems to need protection from a news
source seeking to manipulate the
press.
Exercises: The Use of
Documents
1. Determine the location and public
accessibility of records in your city
that relate to:
Land and building ownership.
Taxes.
Crime.
Elections.
Business ownership and
incorporation.
• Licenses and permits.
•
•
•
•
•
2. The following are some basic
questions that come up in
reporting. Indicate what kind of
records you might check to learn
the following:
• The address of someone not
listed in the phone book.
• The former address(es) of
someone you want to profile – to
talk to older friends or associates.
• Financial information about
individuals.
• Financial information about
companies.
Exercise: Cultivating
News Sources
Beginners may wonder how the
journalist develops reliable news
sources. On the opposite page jot
down your ideas on how to do this.
For example, do you think a reporter
should share his or her sources with
another reporter?
Part I: Reporting
Notes
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
37
Getting the Story
International Center for Journalists
Part II: Writing
Part II: Writing
Overview
The basics of good writing are clarity, style, and accuracy.
• Clarity generally means simplicity – seeing something clearly and describing it
simply. It also means precision and directness, material that is well organized,
with examples to build bridges between the known and the unknown.
• Style means consistency in spelling, punctuation, capitalization and other
writing essentials. It also means language that is exciting – active verbs, vivid
adjectives, people color, humor and mood.
• Accuracy means factual presentation – names spelled correctly, accurate
quotes or numbers, the right dates and places – but it also means
completeness. These are the fundamentals of good news writing.
39
Getting the Story
Approaches to News
Writing
News stories are “hard” or “soft” and
generally come in two parts – a “lead”
or “intro,” and the body, which
encloses the rest of the story.
• The lead sets the story’s tone and
gives the reader a terse summary of
its contents.
Exercise: Approaches to
News Writing
Considering only the plain meaning
of the words “hard” and “soft,” jot
down on the opposite page your
understanding of the differences
between “hard news” and “soft
news.”
• The body follows, with its points
developed in order of importance.
This is the classic inverted pyramid
described by the narrator in Getting
the Story.
The Inverted Pyramid
Lead
Five W’s and an H
Body
Details about lead
Background
Secondary material
International Center for Journalists
Part II: Writing
Notes
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
41
Getting the Story
The Lead/Intro
Normally the lead or intro answers the
questions, who, what, where, when,
why and how– the “5 W’s and H”
mentioned already. If a news story is
assembled well, an editor may be able
to write a headline just by condensing
the lead. However, the questions
need not be answered in a single
sentence. Consider two examples.
Example No. 1
In the first official action since taking
office, Pakistani Prime Minister
Benazir Bhutto ordered a general
amnesty Thursday benefiting an
estimated 3,000 political prisoners
jailed under the late President
Mohammed Zia ul-Haq for opposition
to his regime.
Example No. 2
Until midnight Thursday, many
Pakistanis, fresh from the first free
election in 13 years, were anxiously
waiting for Premier-designate Ms.
Benazir Bhutto to announce
members of her first cabinet.
Although few expected she could do
this in the three days since her
designation as the first woman prime
minister of a largely Muslim nation,
political observes thought the
formation of a government would be
the first order of business on Ms.
Bhutto’s agenda.
It was not. In a midnight
announcement yesterday, Ms. Bhutto
made the surprise move of ordering
a general amnesty that is expected to
benefit some 3,000 political prisoners
jailed by the late President
Mohammed Zia ul-Haq for their
opposition to his regime.
International Center for Journalists
In the two examples, the first is a
“hard” lead and the second a “soft” or
“delayed” lead.
• A hard news lead summarizes an
important development when the
time element is critical, as in
Example No. 1.
• In the second example, time
obviously is not critical; but although
the basic facts are known, the story
is sketchy and needs context. The
delayed lead satisfies that
requirement and also reveals
something about the new
government’s priorities. The
reporter in Getting the Story uses a
delayed lead.
• The “microcosm”: A variant of the
delayed lead is the microcosm,
which is often useful in handling a
subject that is important but
complex or technical, such as taxes,
municipal budgets or sewers. The
London-based Gemini News
Service, in a manual for rural
journalists in the developing world,
offers these examples:
Example No. 1
GHANA- The European Investment
Bank (EIB) has given a loan of 1.7
million European Currency Units
(ECU) for the extension and
improvement of the high voltage
electricity transmission system to
serve the central and northern parts
of Ghana as far as the border with
Burkina Faso.
Example No. 2
GHANA- In Kofi Boateng’s hut in
remote northern Ghana, the
electricity is about to go on for the
first time. As far north as the
Burkina Faso border, rural villagers
like him are stepping into a new age.
Part II: Writing
Notes
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
43
Getting the Story
Sourcing
Information has to come from
somewhere, and when is not directly
observed or heard by a journalist, it
must be “sourced” or attributed.
For example:
• The police reported today that 10
bombs exploded.
• General Pinochet said in a farewell
speech…
• The birth rate is declining, the report
said.
• “Every Briton should be proud,”
Thatcher said.
If giving authority to a story is critical,
responsibility should be fixed
immediately. For example:
WASHINGTON—The U.S Supreme
Court ruled today…
Often a story is one merely because
of the person or persons involved in it.
For example:
FRANKFURT ON THE ODER, East
Germany—Willy Brandt took the
East German election campaign
onto Polish soil today to assure
Poland that most Germans don’t
want to recover areas that were
German until 1945.
Mobbed by an excited crowd of
Poles who braved a cold rain to
cheer perhaps the only German who
is genuinely popular in their country,
Brandt traversed the bridge over the
Oder River, which forms the frontier
here.
Brandt, who has been elected
honorary chairman of the East
German Social Democratic Party, a
post he also holds in West
Germany, made the border issue a
major theme in his speech in this
city.
Exercises: Attribution
Indicate by a “yes” or “no” next to the item whether or not you think
attributions necessary:
• _________ Governor Green has not yet announced his budget for 1990.
• _________ Cigarette smoking is the principal cause of cancer among
African American males.
• _________ Police arrested and charged the man with first-degree murder.
• _________ Iran plans to use its “oil weapon” if the developed nations fail to
support establishment of a Palestinian state.
• _________ If the government doesn’t approve their pay demands,
sanitation workers will go on strike, leaving the streets choked with
garbage.
International Center for Journalists
Part II: Writing
Quotations
Quotes strengthen a story, if used
properly. Why is this?
Quotes can give a story authority, or
lend emphasis to particular points, but
not if they are overused. Most
information in a news story is
paraphrased. Reserve the quote for
the thought or experience that you
lack the words to say better. A good
writer develops a sixth sense when to
use quotes and when to paraphrase.
Consider two examples:
“The bank has resumed operations
after the midnight robbery last
Tuesday, and customers are being
served as usual,” General Manager
Ahmed Abdou said today.
These are hardly scintillating remarks.
They could have been paraphrased.
However, that’s not true for the next
quote:
A medical officer said: “The effects of
the siege are enormous. People who
have had nothing to eat for over three
weeks are beginning to use dog and
cat meat for food. Trash is piling up in
every street. Disease is spreading.
It’s a desperate situation.”
Don’t use a quote to begin a story but
place good quotes high up.
45
Getting the Story
Exercises: Constructing the News Story
1. Identify the main theme (lead) in the following notes and write a
news story based on them:
• Finance Minister Hassan Wazir refuses to vote for a government bill calling
for 5 percent devaluation of the national currency.
• Wazir defended his position during a heated debate at the Council of
Ministers yesterday.
• Prime Minister Jalil Abdul Razak said the bill was needed to invigorate the
tourist industry on which the country depends.
• Tourism generates 40 percent of the national income.
• Wazir said devaluation would inflate prices.
• Failing to sway the government, Wazir submitted his resignation then and
there.
• The debate lasted nearly five hours.
• Premier Abdul Razak said later he would announce a replacement for
Wazir in a few days.
2. Use the “inverted pyramid” structure and the 5 W’s and H to find the
theme and write a news story based on these facts:
The Event: A meeting of the city school board.
The Time: Monday, on week before schools open.
The Place: At the school administration building.
Your meeting notes:
• Minutes from last meeting read and adopted.
• Board chairman, John Miller, unanimously re-elected to second one-year
term.
• School superintendent reports that student enrollment is up 12 percent
since last year, mainly from the Fifth District.
• Board votes 7-2 to add two buses in District 5 and reduce number of buses
by two in District 3.
• Board accepts superintendent’s proposed curriculum, including elimination
of compulsory foreign language courses. This accords with a new state
law which makes language study optional.
• Board tables for further study superintendent’s proposal to build a new
gym.
• Board votes 5-4 to eliminate student lunches for, citing program’s
increased taxpayer costs.
• Superintendent reports that vandals caused 20,000 in damage to school
buildings during summer.
• Board by 5-4 vote adopts 14 percent pay raise for school principals, citing
recent increase in living costs due to inflation.
• Meeting adjourns at 10 p.m.
International Center for Journalists
Part II: Writing
Notes
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
47
Getting the Story
International Center for Journalists
Part III: Editing
Part III: Editing
Overview
Writing and editing news is a group activity in which the team members play
different roles. The editor’s job is to assist the reporter to write with clarity, style
and accuracy, not to do it for him or her. Thus, the editor will try not to rewrite a
story but instead cope with the material by recasting, striking out nonessential
words, substituting active or colorful words for dead ones, or perhaps expressing
a phrase in a word. Usually, the editor should not interfere with the writer’s style.
In other words, the editor’s job is to be critical, not creative.
49
Getting the Story
Desk Work
The Editor’s Three Hats
The editor in Getting the Story wears
three hats—a reader’s, a critic’s and a
lawyer’s.
• In the first role, the editor look at the
story as a reader would and asks: is
the story readable, is it interesting?
In the film, we see him tinkering with
the lead, trying to sharpen it into an
effective tool to seize attention.
• In the second role, the editor starts
looking for problems—holes,
inconsistencies, and imbalance in
the story.
• Finally, the editor looks for story
content that could cause legal
problems.
What is libel?
Libel is trouble. Libel is a published
statement that injures person (or
organization or corporation) in his
trade, profession or community
standing.
It is libelous to print that someone is a
thief, or that an individual or business
sells products or raises funds under
false pretenses.
International Center for Journalists
If the statement is not true, the injured
party may sue for libel and perhaps
receive money damages.
Truth, on the other hand, may injure a
reputation and technically be libelous;
but one normally cannot collect for
damages resulting from printing the
truth—for example, a report that
someone has been convicted of a
crime.
Fairness
The editor who defends the ideal of
fairness is a careful editor, and a
careful editor is the best defense
against legal problems.
Every culture has specific values
regarding what is fair and what is
unfair. These values are expressed in
each culture’s news media.
But, just as theft and murder are
outlawed in all cultures, perhaps there
are some universal standards of press
fairness.
Exercises: Fairness
1. Can you list what some of those
universal standards of fairness
might be?
2. Was reporter John Blake at any
point unfair?
Part III: Editing
Notes
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
51
Getting the Story
Taste, Credibility and
Language
The editor is also a guardian in three
other areas that are related: good
taste, credibility and language. These
qualities are also highly sensitive to
one’s culture.
As a guardian of language, the editor
looks for disagreement between
pronouns and their antecedents, and
verbs and their subjects. He or she is
also alert for dropped, misused or
misspelled words; excessive or faulty
punctuation; and sentences that are
either incomplete or so run-on they
are hard to read. For example:
• Odd Dress: During World War I
tires made Akron a boom town
where workers wore silk shirts and
slept in shifts (shift has a double
meaning here.)
• Wrong Number: Looting and arson
was widespread (were widespread)
International Center for Journalists
• Redundancy: … there can be little
question that carter does in fact
represent a broad consensus of
opinion among Democrats and
Democratic sympathizers today.
(Delete “of opinion”; a “consensus”
means a general harmony of
opinion.)
Exercises: Taste and
Credibility
1. Give an example of what would
be “bad” taste for a newspaper in
your culture.
2. How did Reporter John Blake
jeopardize his newspaper’s
credibility?
Part III: Editing
Notes
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
53
Getting the Story
Exercises: Editing the Copy
Make changes where you think necessary in the following:
1. John Jones was drowned while swimming in the river.
2. There were bars on either side of the door as a safety
precaution.
3. The auto was completely demolished.
4. Funeral services will be held at 8 p.m. tonight.
5. What we need is more advance planning.
6. They successfully withstood the invasion.
7. Having pulled the pin with his teeth, the grenade was thrown by
the soldier in the bushes.
8. He was bred, sold, rented for stud and ran dogs in the United
States.
9. His brother, whom he said was a homosexual, threw himself in
front of the subway train.
10. Johnson told me who to root for in wars.
11. If I was president I’d make peace with every nation in the world.
12. My father and mother are both part Scotch but, neither he nor
she know anything about Robert Burns.
13. She was strangled to death in her bed.
14. If you were smart (and your IQ tests says that you are), you will
be able to quickly tell what is wrong with tnis sentence.
15. I like their proposals; they will be as popular with the public as
they are with us.
International Center for Journalists
Part III: Editing
Notes
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
55
Getting the Story
International Center for Journalists
Part III: Editing
Headlines and Captions
Headlines
A headline is both a label and an
advertisement. The product being
sold is the news story. Readers shop
their way through its pages, stopping
by to read stories that are instructive,
entertaining or useful, and passing
over the rest. So the headline must
attract but it also must be accurate
and honest. Misleading headlines
annoy.
Editor Eugene R. Miler offers this
advice to headline writers:
• Read the story carefully and decide
what the news point is. It’s not
always in the lead, but it is almost
always something that has just
happened or is about to happen.
• Make the headline state the point of
the story. Compare, for example
Mayor Describes/His Finances to ‘I
Never Stole’/ Mayor Tells Jury.
• Make every word count. Use active
voice, present tense.
• Use names. Search for the apt
expression. Give the headline
grace and sparkle.
• Put a second-day head on a
second-day story—when the point is
no longer that the plane crashed,
but the nine survivors have been
found.
• Avoid “headlinese”—terms
resembling English which usually
are found only in headlines: flay,
eye, slate, rip, nab, huddle, hit,
confab.
• Do not base a head on facts far
down in the story. If the facts are
that important, move them higher.
• Avoid facts or interpretations in the
headline not in the story.
Captions
A caption has a more limited purpose
than a headline. It’s a label, not an
advertisement. It should be brief,
answer clearly the questions “when”
and “where” and be accurate.
The caption writer may not have seen
the picture; it was described to him.
Maybe the writer did see the picture
but the details didn’t register, or later
some of them were cropped away.
Make sure to read the accompanying
story and notice any discrepancies.
57
Getting the Story
Exercise: Writing Headlines
1. Have someone clip a few stories from an issue of the daily
newspaper you haven’t seen, minus the headlines. Then try your
hand at headlining. See how your headlines compare with the
originals.
2. Try putting headlines on a few high points in history. For
example, Noah Builds Ark;/ Sees a Long Rain or World is Round/
Genoan Declares. You will think of many others.
More Exercises
South-North New Service (SNNS) received the following stories
from correspondents. South-North is a U.S.-based international
news service with an unusual outlook: Instead of sending
correspondents abroad, the agency tries to report on other
countries from the perspective of their own journalists. It does this
with the help of an unusual partnership between U.S. editors and
local writers around the world.
Although the target of the agency’s story output is the reader of
U.S. newspapers, the South-North method should work elsewhere
too.
In these exercises, imagine yourself working in South-North’s
Hanover, New Hampshire, offices. The managing editor hands you
a story to edit. Do what is indicated at the top of each story.
International Center for Journalists
Part III: Editing
Notes
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
59
Getting the Story
Story No. 1
Ghana/Slogans
1427 words
[The following, from a SNNS correspondent in Accra, Ghana, is too long and could be more
sharply focused. One way to bring length down is to feature only one driver, and cut remarks
of others to bare bones. Cut to 800 words maximum.]
*
*
*
For inspiring words of wisdom, for encouragement in times of troubles and
sometimes just for fun, Ghanaians read daily like a horoscope the signs
inscribed on their “mammy” trucks and other vehicles.
It is not uncommon to find inscriptions like “Sweet Mother,” “Good Times Ahead,”
“Sweet Not Always,” “My star will shine,” “As for this World…” and “Modin Sane
(Black Man’s Attitude).” These writing easily denote the sort of encounters the
drivers or carowners have had or problems they are facing with regard to their
stay on earth.
Others simply give thanks to relatives or friends who have assisted them in
diverse ways through inscriptions like “Good Father,” “Blood is Thicker than
Water,” “Good Never Lost,” “One Good Turn Deserves Another,” and so on.
However, those who have tasted the severity and uncompromising attitudes of
humans always stop in their tracks to issue warnings: “Fear Man,” “Friends
Today Enemies Tomorrow,” “The World is a Stage,” “Come Back Jesus,” “Noko
Ye Dzen (There is Something in this World)”.
There are others that crave for changes in the social setting. Perhaps in this
category can be placed those with “love” running through their themes.
One inscription which however, intrigues and moreover drums down an after
thought lesson is “Who Be You?” written boldly on a cargo truck that plies
between Accra and Nsawam, a distance of about 23 miles.
International Center for Journalists
Part III: Editing
The rear end of the vehicle has a picture of a Rastafarian with dreadlocks clad in
rasta colours of red, gold, and green with the inscriptions, “Peace and Love.”
The vehicle like any other is not strange by any standard but the after thought
lesson that it teaches with regard to man’s existence on earth.
It seems to postulate a position that as if many people are confused concerning
some matters that are of the highest importance, thus many evidently go through
life with important questions unresolved in their lives.
Perhaps some, after probing lightly finally conclude that there are no good
answers to life’s crucial questions and resign themselves to ignorance and thus
to condemnation.
But to Kwaku Adu, 27, the driver of “Who Be You?,” nothing really worths it than
the inscription he has on his vehicle.
Having survived an accident in his infancy in which the mother died, Kwaku held
on doggedly to life. His father who had then divorced his mother shed off his
parental responsibility.
Kwaku’s education had to be borne by his grandpa whose efforts he
complemented through occasional farming ventures and shoe-shining. But as
fate will have it, in our world of constant crime, turmoil, deception and
oppression, he needed a source of relief or consolation, a solace for his
anxieties.
His ambition led him astray after a lot of bruises with the law. Kwaku finally left
for Nigeria in the early part of the 1980’s. He came back a changed person, at
least so he says, with a vehicle to run for a living.
61
Getting the Story
“However, my dreams were shattered after I had put up a family,” Kwaku vividly
recalled. Business turned sour, his eight-year-old only daughter Amy died.
Amy’s mother bubbling with anger over Kwaku’s inability to provide her with her
needs also left him.
Life was not worth living, Kwaku maintained, so he left for the under-world.
Basking with a new sense of vitality, he became an emissary of syndicate that
operated along the Accra-Tema Motorway. “This went on for a while till by the
depth of my conviction rather by the light of logic, it rekindled a sense of
confidence in me.” At least this provided the necessary ingredient that gave birth
to a new wave of courage, boldness and overcoming doubts.
His immediate plan was possibly to travel to Canada where his childhood playmate, Kofi Paul had had a comfortable berth. In fact he had written to Kofi who
had given his consent.
And it was at the offices of the National Lotteries in Accra where Kwaku was in
fact loitering one day when he happened to meet a one-time bosom friend with
whom he exchanged the fraternal slogan “Who Be You?”. The friend had heard
of Kwaku’s calamities and therefore promised to assist him. His father owned a
number of vehicles of which one was assigned to Kwaku as a driver’s “Mate”.
Following his comporting, initiative and manners, he took over as the driver after
sometime.
According to Kwaku the inscription, “Who Be You?” is therefore to arouse
people’s emotions to what they are and to reflect on what they can do. “This is
because unless we take responsibility for our own thinking, feelings and actions
we will never be able to handle our burdens but will always blame someone else
for them or expect someone else to carry them for us.”
Kwaku’s case is not an isolated one. Osei Yaw, another driver aged 29 did not
mince when he wrote “To Hell With Human,” apparently he meant “To Err is
International Center for Journalists
Part III: Editing
Human,” but considering the circumstances to which he had been subjected, it
dawned on him to inscribe those words on his Toyota Hiace vehicle.
To Osei, life could at times be bothersome. Anytime things seemed to be
smoothing for him a problem crops up and then gets the sack. Two car-owners
he had previously worked for sacked him because he had always presented
them with less money—incidentally he had been seen on numerous occasions
spending lavishly on women. This, his previous “masters” interpreted as a
sabotage on their earnings.
Another driver, John Owusu, 48, just describes his mother as “Sweet” because of
her immense contribution to his upkeep and for buying him the vehicle. In
recognition of that he has inscribed “Sweet Mother” on his vehicle.
But to Ayittey Armah, 22, the blackman is unyielding in all his endeavors. He
sees the blackman as creating problems for himself, unable to fend for himself,
as someone who would not want to see his brother succeed and thus sees the
blackman as an embodiment of problems, hence the inscription, “Black Man’s
Attitudes.”
Incidentally, unconfirmed reports have it that almost 85 per cent of commercial
vehicles plying Ghanaian roads have inscriptions of some sort which are in part
to propagate the inner feelings of the owners or handlers to serve as
decorations.
Commenting on these inscriptions, Kofi Ametepe, a sociologist at the University
of Ghana retorts that the vivid display of inner feelings epitomize ideas which
could be infused into the everyday life of Ghanaians and even into policies.
“They could be of help to policy-makers and institutions because they are not just
set for fun but in real terms of much significance for people of all walks of life,
63
Getting the Story
since one’s problem and subsequent solution could help fortify others from
imminent predicament.”
Judging from the response these inscriptions, more so by those conscious efforts
at bringing to light certain information, one would presuppose that Ghanaian
authorities would have by now taken cognizance of some of these writings.
“We know of these inscriptions, Fact is that we even like them and we’ve
regarded them as societal problems and aspirations of the people,” a top official
of the Department of Social Welfare declared.
He conceded, “This is the simple message our people want to push across, that
it means like people are looking for a good feeling these days and need to be
helped.”
The “Feeling” binge has gone over into religion also as people by the thousands
keep looking for some religious experience—some “turn on” that will blow their
minds and give them instant peace and happiness.
Never perhaps have the Ghanaian society persistently proclaimed the need for
peace and love until recent times, never have they so widely protected their good
intentions of mutual toleration or their fear. Never have the interdependence and
necessary integrations been so stressed.
And yet conflicts are no fewer they break out, grow venomous and smoulder in
all quarters of the earth. We read of appeals of peace, of manifestos and
“marches”.
But how do we exorcise the fatality of violence? The question rather is whether
or not we are ready to allow the self-interest, our secret insecurities and our
shared preconceptions to yield to a general call of world solidarity to break down
the walls of division and work towards collaborative brotherhood.
International Center for Journalists
Part III: Editing
To Kwaku Adu, “perhaps we’d need to know who we are and what we can do, so
dear on ’Who Be You?” Well, “Peace and Love”.
65
Getting the Story
Notes
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
Story
No. 2
__________________________
Brazil/TV Sex
International Center for Journalists
Part III: Editing
1000 words
[The following, received from a SNNS correspondent in Rio de Janeiro, needs tightening. The
story might be more inviting to a non-Brazilian if the program “Tieta” was compared to a
program familiar to the reader. Cut to 800 words at most.]
* * *
A malicious and wealthy prostitute who has seduced a catholic novice who
happens to be her nephew; a powerful landlord who has bought six girls for his
sex games; a respected man who supports a lover who, on her turn, has a sexy
boy friend who takes to bed every woman he crosses; two single and solitary
women who tremble at the proximity of a man; homosexual hints and the happy
and perverted life of a brothel. Together, with much humor, a first quality cast
and a very careful production, these are the main ingredients of “Tieta,” the most
popular serial in Brazilian TV today, which is watched by at least 50 million
people every night. This number represents 65% of all the television sets turned
on at the time, in 99% of the 4 thousand cities of the country.
Tieta is a great success, as usually happens with the serials produced by Globo
network. Based on the novel by Jorge Amado, a renowned Brazilian writer, the
serial approaches with naturalism themes that couldn’t even imagined to be
shown on TV just a few years ago.
Constitution
This sex liberalization on TV and in just about every other artistic manifestation is
a direct consequence of the elimination of all kinds of censorship, be it political,
ideological or artistic, by the new Constitution, promulgated by Congress in 1998.
Not bad for a country whose past government used to censor most means of
communication, books, films and culture in general. It got to the extreme of
having the performance of the Bolshoi Ballet prohibited in Brazil in the late 70’s
simply because it was from a communist country.
Things have changed a lot. Especially on television, which is always ahead in
innovations. As the Constitution only admits an age rating for the programs,
67
Getting the Story
which hasn’t been regulated yet, Brazilians are breathing the air of cultural
freedom. And they seem to be enjoying it. The audience of Tieta is one of the
largest ever reached by a TV program. Not even the first presidential elections in
29 years, which became a passion, disturbed Tieta’s success of public. If politics
was the first theme of any conversation group, Tieta and the sex adventures of
its characters surely were the second.
Cry Against
The reactions against sex on TV were expected and came first from the religious
groups. Gidel Dantas, president of the Brazilian Evangelic Confederation has
recently asked the future minister of Justice, Bernardo Cabral, “to take the
necessary steps to curb the exploitation of aberrant prostitution and homosexual
manifestations on TV.” Cabral answered that he is against censorship, but
promised to talk to the TV network owners.
His task won’t be so easy. In the following day, Folha de S. Paulo, one of the
most important newspapers in the country said, in editorial, that any
“recommendation, warning or comment by the minister means a subtle
coercion.” And continues, “To Try to guide, administer or censor the
transformations in the sensibility and ethical evaluations of society means
repression or tutorship, with all the harmful consequences that either one brings
to freedom of expression.” The editorial concludes saying that “the spectator has
his right guaranteed to turn off the TV set or to change the channel if he doesn’t
accept what he is watching.”
This is surely not what people intend to do. Nobody likes to be out of home from
8:30 to 9:30 p.m, so as not to miss the daily chapter. “The serial treats these
themes with so much naturalism that I think it is better to discuss than to hide
them,” comments Nyrce Vianna, a 76 year-old maiden lady who is a fan of the
TV serials. “Some mothers get worried about how to explain to the children the
new sex questions that arise because of what they see on TV. In another day
International Center for Journalists
Part III: Editing
chapter every couple went to bed,” says Marua Morais, a dentist who spots
some exaggeration but doesn’t miss the serial.
If the general opinion among Brazilians seems to be positive, that is not the
same among those who are not keeping up with the fast modification of habits.
“It’s hard for me to let my 10 year-old daughter watch Tieta,” confesses Josunder
line Amaro Siqueira, 36, a progressive Brazilian journalist who has been living in
France for two year and was amazed to see the serial during his last vacation in
Brazil.
Sensual TV scenes, such as the special effects that opens the same Tieta,
showing a totally naked woman twisting into a tree, may shock foreigners. But
they actually match the Brazilian way of living very well. The sensuality of
Brazilian women is well known. Beautiful tanned and barely dressed bodies on
the beaches and at carnival are typical images of the country abroad. What is
different today is that this sensuality is spread everywhere. Television is simply
showing it.
Children’s Programs
Even children’s TV programs are in this process. They are presented in every
channel by women who are frequently in the national magazine’s covers. And
their bodies are hardly covered when they are talking to millions of kids through
TV. If a channel dares to hide more reserved girl to present the program it
certainly will lose points in the audience. The children just live their feminine
heroes. And the men too. Thomas Wilson, and American citizen from Iowa
visiting Brazil was impressed with the beauty of “Xuxa,” the most popular of the
children’s show-women, but he said, “In the U.S. this program would be
considered immoral.”
That’s the way things are in a tropical country. And certainly they will influence
many other people, since Brazilian TV serials and programs are exported to 52
other countries all over the world. “People are getting to know Brazil through our
69
Getting the Story
serials the same way we knew the world through Hollywood,” says Roberto
Irineu Marinho, one of the top executives of Globo network. And fortunately, they
are not learning only about love stories or sensuality. The series try to discuss
the main Brazilian worries such as corruption, inflation, democracy and so on.
Which seems to interest people everywhere. In Latin America, for instance,
some of the Brazilian artists are just as popular as the best soccer players.
Lucélia Santos, an artist who played a slave in “Escrava Isaura,” is adored by
600 million Chinese persons. And this same serial changed the dinner time
habits in Portugal some years ago because people preferred to watch the serial
than to go to the table and eat.
International Center for Journalists
Part III: Editing
Notes
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
71
Getting the Story
Story No. 3
China/Catholics
900 words
[This story is from a SNNS correspondent in Beijing. Her story tends to “tell” rather than
“show”. A problem too is sentence structure that’s too complex. But a light editorial touch—
polishing rather than recasting—seems appropriate here.]
*
*
*
It was Sunday night, dark and cold. The wind was as cutting as you would
expect in high winter in the northern part of China. For most Beijingers, it was an
ordinary weekend. People huddled at home for a warm and restful time. The
streets were deserted.
But in the South Cathedral, a semi-Chinese, semi-Roman style of grey bricks at
Xuanwumen, thousands of worshippers had gathered to say midnight mass on
Christmas Eve. They were joined by many curious youngsters to make the
brightly-lit hall packed to the full.
Amidst the solemn church ringing and carol singing, they listened to Michael Fu
Tieshan, Bishop of the Beijing diocese, reading is Christmas greetings of “peace
for the country and for the people.” An old woman in black followed the bishop in
prayer and crossed herself with a trembling hand, her face tightened in the
concentration and her eyes brimming with tears, while a little boy of five or six,
kneeling beside her on the bench, was looking around lightheartedly.
The South Cathedral, which is also the seat of the Beijing Catholic Patriotic
Association, had seen several great celebrations in recent days. It was there, on
December 21st, a high mass was held to mark the 10th anniversary of the
consecration of Bishop Fu. Elected and ordained by the Chinese clergy and
congregations, he is the third Chinese bishop in the 389-year history of the
Beijing diocese.
International Center for Journalists
Part III: Editing
On the same occasion, six priests were ordained by the bishop, bringing the
number of priests in Beijing to 24. They gave blessings and received
congratulations outside the South Cathedral. Looking in the 20’s, most of them
from Christian families. All are graduates from the Chinese Catholic Seminary,
China’s first Catholic Seminary reopened after the “cultural revolution” and run by
the Beijing diocese. There they have studied religious philosophy, theology,
Chinese, English, Latin, politics and history.
The South Cathedral was the only church open to worshippers ten years ago
when Bishop Fu first took office. Since then, a lot has been done by the sate to
rebuild or renovate old churches. With the reopening on December 23rd of the
Gothic style St. Michael’s Church southeast of Tian’anmen Square, Beijing now
has 12 churches open to church-goers in the city and rural areas. According to
Bishop Fu another old church in Xizhimen, western Beijing, will be opened in the
new year. It was built on the orders of Emperor Yongzheng of the Qing Dynasty
in the early 18th century for the Italian music teacher Pedrini.
The South Cathedral, however, is the oldest Catholic church in Beijing. Built in
the 17th century after an Italian priest Matteo Ricci came to China to preach, the
cathedral (where he lived an died) bears witness to the ups and downs of
Catholicism in China. In its heyday of glory, Emperor Sun Zhi of the Qing
Dynasty paid 24 visits to the church. It was twice destroyed by fire in 1775 and
in 1900, and was rebuilt in 1904. The church was closed down in 1966, during
the dark age of the “cultural revolution,” when all religions were condemned as
“superstition” and all priests and sisters were called “devils” and sent to do hard
labor. Its reopening took place in 1979, with the implementation of the policy of
free religious belief.
Since then, Catholicism has made slow but steady headway. The South
Cathedral now receives more than 300 worshippers every day according to
Teresa Ying, Secretary General of the Beijing Catholic Patriotic Association. The
73
Getting the Story
number reaches 2,000 on Sundays, and nearly 8,000 no important occasions
like Christmas.
Catholics number about 4,000,000 in the mainland, compared with 3,000,000 in
1949. There are 40,000 Catholics in Beijing. And the number is increasing,
since more than 300 people are baptized every year.
The church-goers are motivated differently, said Teresa Ying. Most people
worship God out of genuine belief. Many of them were born to Catholic families,
and baptized by their parents, who in turn by their parents. So generation after
generation, Catholic families keep their religious belief. Shi Hongxi, a Catholic
from the Tong Xian County in the eastern suburbs of Beijing, said ninety per cent
of the people in his villages are Catholics.
There are also young worshippers with no religious background, said Madame
Ying. Many of them become Catholics after sustaining setbacks in life such as
failure in examination or in love. They feel lost and come to God to seek
consolation and spiritual sustenance. Lin Wei, a pale print worker, fell out with
fellow workers. He felt lonely and upset. He came to attend a three-month
course on creed of the Church run by the South Cathedral for those who want to
be baptized. “I don’t think God is that omnipotent and created the universe,” he
said. “But I like Catholic friends. I can get real love and help from them and that
keeps my mind in peace and harmony.” There are students who converted
themselves to the Church because they are interested in theological studies.
A few youngsters, Madame Ying said, “come to the church in order to find
opportunities to meet foreigners in the hope that they can help them get abroad.
But they form only a very, very small minority.”
International Center for Journalists
Part III: Editing
Notes
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
75
Getting the Story
Story No. 4
Philippines/politics
1300 words
[There are two problems with this story from the SNNS correspondent in the Philippines: It is
too long and its point is lost in all the color and atmosphere employed by the writer to
introduce it. Find the lead and cu text to a maximum 900 words.]
*
*
*
Manila—Valentine’s day is an important day to Filipinos. It is Christmas, wedding
anniversary, father’s and mother’s day combined. Greeting card companies
anticipate it like Christmas. Department stores decorate their show windows with
cut-out hearts and small cupids with bows and arrows on red cardboard and
make a killing on Valentine gifts. Restaurant and hotels (not mention motels)
advertise special valentine dinner shows and special rates on overnight stays.
So when talk started circulating about a possible coup on Valentine’s Day, it had
to be dismissed outright as without value. Whoever floated that rumor may have
realized the mistakes and the rumor mill corrected itself. Whatever the coup
plotters have in store, it will have to wait after Valentine’s Day. Soldiers after all,
have to worry about wives and girl friends, not to mention mistresses, all looking
forward to Valentine’s Day.
Talk of coups have paralyzed this country for the last two months. The stock
market has had lackluster trading. The only time it perked up somewhat was
early this week when the military announced an increase in the reward for the
capture of military revel leader, ex-Lt. Col. Gregorio Honasan from P1 million to
P5 million. But persistent reports, which the military brass denied, that Honasan
led a successful raid of an air base armory in Central Luzon (a few kilometers
from the American Clark Air Base), continue to dampen the spirits of local
business.
International Center for Journalists
Part III: Editing
The political grapevine is convinced that “something is going to happen” anytime
now. Two external factors are said to be behind a potential “big event”, namely,
Imelda Marcos who may be desperate enough to try something drastic before
her New York trial in March; and the United States who is eager to negotiate a
new bases treaty with “a more permanent government.”
Political pundits say there is a better than 50% change that a national election (to
include executive and legislative positions) will be held before 1992. It may be
called another name other than “snap elections” and may or may not require a
constitutional revision. But analysts say “something has got to give sooner than
later.”
The succession of visits from American officials is being pointed to as a “sign” of
American pressure. White House Security Affairs Advisor Robert Gates was in
Manila for a quick meeting with the President Aquino and Defense Secretary
Fidel Ramos. U.S. Defense Secretary Richard Chaney is expected next week
and there are reports that Vice President Dan Quayle is expected next week and
there are reports that Vice President Dan Quayle is expected again for his
second visit in less than six months.
Outside of the Americans, the local business sector is also restless over the
uncertainty that has characterized the environment since the December coup.
Finally, in the wake of the political and economic problems that have eroded faith
in the government’s ability to control events, an unscheduled election may just be
the “carnival to distract the people even momentarily” from the bleak prospects
ahead. Assuming an election is called over the next few months or even within
the next year, who are the personalities likely to contest it?
The political fall out from the December 1 coup seem to have been extensive
enough to damage the 1992 ambitions of many aspiring national politicians. For
one, the perceived fence-sitting, or worst, possible involvement of such names
77
Getting the Story
as Vice President Salvador Laurel and Senator Juan Ponce Enrile only plunged
them deeper in the acceptability rating polls.
The coup, the most destructive of the six that have taken place over the last four
years, also damaged the public perceptions of Defense Secretary Fidel Ramos
and Senator Ernesto Maceda, a savvy publicity conscious Chairman of the
Senate Defense Committee. While Gen. Ramos received plusses for staying
loyal to the Republic, questions were raised on how well he controls and
manages the defense establishment. As for Senator Maceda, the military, both
rebels and loyalists, say he has alienated them from the constitutional
government.
The coup may have also dashed once and for all, talk of Mrs. Aquino seeking a
second term in 1992. Indeed, political observers are agreed she has had
enough even as they wonder if she can even survive the end of her current term.
At best, Mrs. Aquino may anoint her successor but even this may not have the
same political value it may have had prior to December 1.
With a perception that Mrs. Aquino is out of the running, the race is on to be her
anointed or at least, be a force to contend with. There is not doubt that health
permitting, 72 year-old Senate President Jovito Salonga is a candidate for the
presidency in 1992, with or without Ms. Aquino’s blessings. Mr. Salonga is
reportedly looking at popular movie actor Joseph Estrada who recently took a
strong stand against the continued presence of the American bases, as his
running mate. The only problem is, Senator Estrada may have other ideas… like
seeking the presidency himself.
Speaker Ramon Mitra, in his early fifties and who until recently was president of
LDP, Mrs. Aquino’s umbrella party, has been making himself highly visible. Over
the next two weeks, a new newspaper to be published by a friend of Mr. Mitra,
will make its debut. It is not expected to make money in a field of over 24 dailies.
International Center for Journalists
Part III: Editing
Reports indicate that it is prepared to lose a much as P30 million over the next
year and a half, which happens to be presidential campaign season.
Mr. Mitra’s problem however, is his lack of natural constituency as well as the
financial resources necessary for a successful campaign. Ambassador Eduardo
Danding Cojuangco, a cousin of Mrs. Aquino who has supported the late former
President Marcos who may decide to run for presidency himself under the
banner of a united opposition.
Opposition leaders say that neither Laurel nor Enrile can unite the fragmented
opposition as well as Danding Cojuangco could. If Danding Cojuangco runs, it is
not outside the realm of possibilities that Mr. Mitra may agree to be his running
mate. If such a situation happens, the LDP will have to choose between fielding
Fidel Ramos who is said to have American backing, and supporting Jovito
Salonga of the Liberals.
Senator John Osmena, a half-American who belongs to a political family in
Southern Philippines, may just be the ideal candidate to team up with Danding
Cojuangco. Senator Osmena has taken an independent political stance and is
not a member of any political party. He has a natural cote rich constituency. His
nationwide campaign for his proposed federal amendment to the constitution has
also given him the exposure that will be valuable for a nationwide campaign. His
pro-American bases position, which for the moment tallies with popular
sentiment outside of Metro Manila should help win votes as well as American
support.
The big factor however, that must be considered for 1992, is the young voting
population and the popular discontent with traditional political types. It is
possible that someone who is perceived to be non-traditional (Gen. Biazon?
Health Secretary Alfredo Bengzon?) may be more acceptable to the young
voters. Such a dark horse may emerge as the date approaches. That dark
79
Getting the Story
horse will probably ride on popular acclaim in the same manner that youthful
fads in fashion or showbiz heroes take off.
But coups and snap elections take a back seat for the moment. Filipinos are
busy this week celebrating Valentine’s Day. The thought of a wife or lover raising
hell because one forgot to buy a Valentine’s day gift or make the proper
reservations for a Valentine’s Day dinner is more fearsome than the face of a
grinning Gringo Honasan leading yet another coup.
International Center for Journalists
Part III: Editing
Notes
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
__________________________
81
34
Getting the Story
Story No. 5
South Africa/Refugees
950 words
[This story is from a SNNS correspondent living in Soweto. The story is
well-focused but it is too long and the sentence structure is unduly
complex. Again, a light editorial touch—polishing rather than recasting—is
demanded here. Cut to a maximum of 750 words.]
*
*
*
HLUPHEKANI SQUATTER CAMP, South Africa—Merriam Mnguni with her five
children walked for seven days without food, braving land mines, an electric
fence and wild animals to flee war-ravaged Marxist Mozambique into apartheid
South Africa.
With her naked five month-old baby strapped to her back and two other small
children in tow, Mnguni remembers trampling over bleached bones of refugees
who never made it into South Africa.
“Those were some of the unlucky ones among hundreds of refugees who were
either killed by snakes and other wild animals on their way to South Africa. To us
apartheid is better than being found in the middle of a civil war caused by
Marxism,” she said.
South Africa said recently it had repatriated about 39,000 Mozambican refugees
during 1989.
Pretoria says it was not possible to determine the number of Mozambican
refugees in South Africa as they had done so illegally.
But human rights groups monitoring refugees and feeding scheme organisations
estimate there are about 450,000 such refugees in South Africa including some
International Center for Journalists
Part III: Editing
of the homelands, 10 mini-states created by Pretoria in line with its apartheid
policy for blacks to exercise their political right.
A United Nation High Commission for Refugees report stated recently more than
a million people had been displaced in southern Africa because of the civil war
between the Marxist Mozambican government of Joachim Chissano and rebel
Mozambique Resistance Movement, popularly known as RENAMO.
The organisation said there are 600,000 registered refugees in Malawi and half
the number in Zimbabwe.
To reach South Africa and the homelands of Gazankulu, Kangwane and
Boputhatswana, the refugees survived minefields planted by rebel soldiers
fighting Mozambique’s Marxist government and South Africa’s lethal barbed wire
fence erected along 20 km (12 miles) strip bordering South Africa and
Mozambique to prevent illegal immigrants.
They also have to dodge the wrath of the South African and Mozambican
soldiers patrolling the borders.
“Whoever can tell me to go back to Mozambique will be cruel. I better die here
than go back there. Mozambique is not a place for people,” Mnguni said in near
tears.
The refugee problem has its own ironies. In South Africa, they risk arrest and
repatriation if found while in South African soil before reaching the scattered
pieces of land which makes the homelands.
But in South Africa’s quasi-homelands which makes its own regulations,
authorities turn a blind eye, regarding them as fellow “brothers” who need help.
They are offered refugee status and qualify for rations, medical help, but no
employment or accommodation.
83
Getting the Story
They then had to endure squalid and unbearable conditions in these homelands,
having to live in pits or makeshift homes made from anything up to plastic and
mud huts without windows.
Mnguni and some of the refugees were interviewed in Hluphekani (Place of
Suffering) squatter camp in Giyani, the capital of the Gazankulu homelands.
Residents said the squatter camp is growing at an alarming rate as the refugees
from Mozambique continue to pour in their hundred to erect makeshift homes.
Operation Hunger, an independent feeding scheme organization says there are
hundreds such camps in Kangwane and Boputhatswana homelands.
Across the homelands, the refugees have settled on scarce agricultural land and
cut down thousands of hectares of trees for fuel wood and shelter.
The huge influx has placed a considerable burden on the homelands, who are
themselves impoverished with a huge unemployment rate.
The refugee program has pushed up costs, food, depleted maize reserves and
scarce resources have been diverted to providing for the health, educational and
other needs of the refugees.
Many refugee children are accepted in the homeland schools in Gazankulu and
Kangwane.
Asked why they left Mozambique most of the refugees said, “The war. The
soldiers burnt the school and the hospital. They also killed our relatives and
abducted our husbands,” said Elvis Shibambo, who said she watched in horror
as RENAMO rebels butchered her husband and two sons.
International Center for Journalists
Part III: Editing
“The reasons for risking our lives are hunger, scarcity of food, poor medical
services, unemployment and instability caused by the raging civil war,” Peter
Sithole, who escaped from a RENAMO detention camp.
It takes refugees between seven to ten days of walking on foot to reach
sanctuary in South Africa.
Many refugees are eaten by wild animals, others die of hunger, thirst and
exposure, are shot or are killed at the electrified border fence.
One of the most hazardous times comes when the refugees have to cross the
lethal electric fence.
We had to dig underneath it with our bare hands. Once we had done so, we
crawled on our stomachs to cross the fence,” said Sithole.
“Some cut wire, throw legs across the fence and walk over, or lift the power lines
with forked sticks. We sometimes hid ourselves in pits, staying for days without
food or water during the daring escape,” he said.
Jacob van Heerden, officer commanding one of the border crossings said the
main reasons for South African opposition to the illegal immigrants were the
financial burdens it placed on the country’s resources.
“We need large sums of money to uplift out own people and cannot afford to
spend on foreigner,” he said.
A major part of South Africa’s work force in the mines comes from neighboring
countries on temporary one-year labor contracts, but soldiers patrol the borders
with Botswana, Zimbabwe, Swaziland, Mozambique to prevent illegal entry.
Farmers along the border have been accused of employing the immigrants
illegally and paying them starvation wages. Pretoria has warned it will charge
85
Getting the Story
any of the farmers not reporting the
presence of refugees.
International Center for Journalists
Acknowledgments
This project draws on the research and staff experience of the International
Center for Journalists. The film was produced by International Film and Video,
Ltd., Arlington, Va., from a script by George Krimsky and Charles Barbour.
Gerald Fitzgerald if Kosmos Associates, Washington, D.C., developed the
workbook and facilitator’s guide. The project itself was made possible by
generous contributions from The Rockefeller Foundation, James and Ruth
Ewing, and Thomas and Elizabeth Winship. The Center also wishes to
acknowledge the help of others in this project.
For their suggestions and counsel, including valuable help with the script, the
Center wishes to thank Raphael Calis of the Kuwait News Agency; Nayan
Chanda of the Far Eastern Economic Review; Jacobo Goldstein, HRN Radio of
Honduras; Aziz Haniffa, The Sun, Colombo, Sri Lanka; Pornpimol Kanchanalak
of the Bangkok Post; and Bisi Olawumni, News Agency of Nigeria.
For assistance with the two book’s definitions of news, the editor wishes to thank
journalism teacher Melvin Mencher’s textbook Basic News Writing, the book
Newsmaking by sociologist and former journalist Bernard Roshco, the late New
York Times executive editor Turner Catledge and Donald S. Kellermann, director
of the Times-Mirror Center for the People and the Press in Washington. The
times-Mirror Center is also the source of the audience survey quoted in the
introduction to the Facilitator’s Guide.
For examples and advice, thanks are also due to the Columbia Journalism
Review; Gemini New Service’s training manual Views from the Village; SouthNorth News Service; the Washington Post Deskbook on Style; the in-house
newsletter “Winners & Sinners” for New York Times editors and news writers; the
American Press Institute’s handbook Effective Writing and Editing; the World
Press Freedom Committee/Rex Rand Fund’s Handbook for Journalists of Central
and Easter Europe; and the book Handling Newspaper Text by Harold Evans.
1616 H Street, 3rd Floor
Washington, DC 20006
www.icfj.org