Week 9
News Writing
Ch. 3 eWorkbook exercises
https://highered.mcgrawhill.com/sites/0073378917/student_view0/c
hapter3/exercise_3-4_3.html
Revising long, wordy sentences - 4.3
4 9. The article, which is titled "In
Praise of Brevity," was labeled
by most readers as biased.
4 10. One of the most surprising
aspects of the war was the fact
that it was never officially
declared a war by the president.
4.3
This year’s $20 to $25 tickets were $5 more expensive than last year’s.
She must make her college years productive.
Marcel’s Café is not one of Seattle’s finest French restaurants.
The film’s opening scene offers insight into Gollum’s split personality.
Wildlife commissioners worry that building seven salamander tunnels under the road from the lake to Percy
Park will bust the project’s budget.
6. Students pack campus buildings on rainy days.
7. Avoid food coloring by buying purple tubers for the potato salad.
8. Some anxious students try to impress their professors with wordy exam answers.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
9.Most readers said the article, “In Praise of
Brevity,” was biased.
10.The president’s decision not to declare war
was surprising.
Cutting Jargon & Journalese - 4.4
 5. Heightening the drama was the fact that he had
called them back from midterm holidays amid
adverse weather conditions in Washington.
 6. Amid allegations of political opportunism and
claims that he had overstepped his authority, the
president launched an offensive to convince Congress
of the urgent need for action.
 7. An important part of implementing his strategy
was to nullify the impact of decisions enacted by
political operators with hidden agendas.
 8. If he didn't act immediately to empower his allies
and forestall his opponents, he knew he later might
have to put down a bloody uprising by militant
members of his own party.
4.4
1. The scientists at the World Health Organization subjected the data to intense scrutiny scrutinized the data
before issuing the alert.
2. If not contained with speed, they warned, the virus could spread exponentially and achieve plague status.
3. The president huddled met with his advisers and then acted with a speed that left shocked his political
opponents and the media world shell-shocked.
4. In a surprise move, the president went on the offense and called Congress back into session.
5. Heightening the drama was the fact that he had called them back
from midterm holidays amid adverse weather conditions during a
storm in Washington.
6. Amid allegations of political opportunism and claims that he had
overstepped his authority, the president launched an offensive
worked to convince Congress of the urgent need for action.
7. An important part of implementing his strategy was to nullify the
impact of decisions enacted by counteracting political operators with
hidden agendas.
8. If he didn’t act immediately to empower his allies and forestall his
opponents, he knew he later might have to put down a bloody
uprising a rebellion by militant members of his own party.
Avoiding Cliches - 4.5
5. The officers, who were armed to the teeth,
swung into high gear and responded with
truncheons and tear gas.
6. Needless to say, the protesters beat a hasty
retreat, took to their heels and dispersed, mostly
just in the nick of time, with police in hot pursuit.
7. "I've never seen so many people run so fast in
so many directions," said Lt. Miguel Cruz, who
didn't seem worse for the wear for his part in the
incident.
8. City officials say they will leave no stone
unturned in exploring ways to make the
demonstrators foot the bill for the police response.
4.5
1. The protest, reportedly organized by pacifists from out of town, began with a rally at the courthouse steps,
where speakers of all spots and stripes lambasted the U.S. government for its role in the Iraq War.
2. By 8 p.m. the crowd of 200 or so had warmed to a boil become rowdy and began to show its true colors.
3. Cool as cucumbers, Police waited calmly at the corner of 6th and Broadway, where the two forces eventually
met.
4. When one group of demonstrators tried to topple a police car, they discovered they had been playing with a
powder keg underestimating the efficiency of the police response.
5. The officers, who were armed to the teeth well-armed, swung into
high gear and quickly responded with truncheons and tear gas.
6. Needless to say, The protesters beat a hasty retreat retreated, took to
their heels and dispersed, mostly just in the nick of time, with police
in hot pursuit.
7. “I’ve never seen so many people run so fast in so many directions,”
said Lt. Miguel Cruz, who didn’t seem not worse for the wear for his
part in the incident.
8. City officials say they will leave no stone unturned in exploring
explore ways to make the demonstrators foot the bill pay for the
police response.
Slide
Ch. 4 eWorkbook - Attributions (p.84-5)
1.
“I saw people running. Then a big guy in a yellow hat swerved and smashed into me and I didn’t see anything
else,” Szelensky said.
2.
“A newspaper is a device for making the ignorant more ignorant and the crazy crazier,” H.L. Mencken, one of the
most famous journalists of his time, said.
3.
“Don’t think of him as a Republican,” said Maria Shriver, who is married to California Gov. Arnold
Schwarzeneggar. “Think of him as the man I love, and if that doesn’t work, think of him as the man who can crush
you.”
4. “I don’t like ketchup on my eggs one bit,” Dorfman said.
“I’m still waiting to hear something that you do like,” Holland said.
5. Michal Smythe, press representative for the company, said the
cyclone had wiped out the corporate headquarters.
6. For instance, former CNN reporter Peter Arnett said: “I’m still in
shock and awe at being fired.”
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Slide
Ch. 4 eWorkbook exercises
answers
 The attribution should go after the first sentence.
2. Avoid separating the source from “said.” This is one of those awkward attributions that would work better
inverted, as in: said H.L. Mencken, one of the most famous journalists of his time.
3. Well-placed and structured attribution.
4. Put the attribution at the beginning of the second quote
to avoid suggesting to the reader that Dorfman is still
speaking.
5. Correct.
6. It’s acceptable to set up a long quote by putting a colon
after the attribution, but this quote is too short to qualify.
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Slide
Quotes: Punctuation &
Attribution
p. 92, Test Yourself Exercise #3
a, b, c only
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Slide
AP style practice
1. Joe Java Junior joined the American Automobile Association, just like his father, Joe Java Senior. (3)
2. The reporter said he would meet with the source at the American Broadcasting Company on November 12. (2)
3. The Pres. Of the U.S. lives in the white house at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. (4)
4.The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) official said the
U.S. could launch ABM missiles at a moment’s notice.
(3)
5.Dr. Andrew Jones, Ph.D in psychology, is a pro-life
advocate. (3)
6. The fire department was dispatched to Nine
Morningside Boulevard to fight a blaze set by accused
arsonist Vern Embers. (3)
7.The Chief of Staff in the President’s Administration
admitted he was a homosexual. (3)
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Slide
AP style practice answers
 Joe Java Jr. joined the AAA, just like his father, Joe Java Sr.
 The reporter said he would meet with the source at ABC on Nov. 12.
 The president of the United States lives in the White House at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.
The CIA official said the United States could launch
ABMs at a moment’s notice.
Andrew Jones, who has a doctorate in psychology, is
an anti-abortion advocate.
The fire department was dispatched to 9 Morningside
Blvd. to fight a blaze.
The chief of staff in the president’s administration said
he was a homosexual.
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Slide
Beat Story #1 feedback/Keep
in mind for Beat Story #2
Refer to page 59
Lead;Nut graph or second paragraph
Check for personal pronouns, passive
voice, grammar and punctuation
problems.
Attribution and Quotes
Check for accuracy, fairness and
balance, redundancy, cliches etc.
AP stylebook
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Slide
Grammar: Plurals and
Possessives
4 Instructions: Please correct the errors in the sentences
below. Do not try to avoid the grammar issue by
rewriting a sentence. Instead, try to keep the words in
the same basic order, but correct the punctuation.
1. The car is the students’.
2. I saw your father at Ricks house.
3. The teacher’s asked the girl’s and boy’s to be quiet.
4. The Detroit Tiger’s baseball team dropped a
doubleheader yesterday.
5. The mans son shoveled the walk.
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Slide
Grammar answers: Plurals and
Possessives
The car is the student’s.
I saw your father at Rick’s house.
The teachers asked the girls and boys to be quiet.
The Detroit Tigers baseball team dropped a
doubleheader yesterday.
The man’s son shoveled the walk.
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© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
lcome to the world of
Every culture seeks effective constantly evolving,
dramatically. The typi
urnalism, where
ways to spread new
reflecting and shaping its
newspaper of 1800 wa
porters have been
information and gossip. In
culture.
undisciplined mishma
gging dirt, raking muck, ancient times, news was
Others see it as an
legislative proceeding
king headlines and
written on clay tablets. In
inspiring quest for free
long-winded essays a
adlines for centuries
Caesar’s age, Romans read
speech, an endless power
secondhand gossip. B
w. It’s a history full of
newsletters compiled by
struggle between Authority 1900, a new breed of
bloid trash, of slimy
correspondents and
(trying to control information)tor had emerged. Jour
nsationalists, of runkards, handwritten by slaves.
and the People (trying to
had become big busin
deadbeats and mmers” (asWandering minstrels spread learn the truth). Which brings Reporting was becom
a Harvard iversity
news (and the plague) in the to mind the words of A.J.
disciplined craft. And
president once scribed
Middle Ages. Them came ink Liefling: “Freedom of the
newspapers were bec
Tim Harrower
reporters).
on paper. Voices on airwaves. press is guaranteed only to more entertaining and
But it’s a history full of Newsreels, Web sites, And
htose who own one.”
essential than ever, w
roes, too: men and
24-hour cable news networks. In the pages ahead, we’ll most of the features w ex
men risking their lives
Thus when scholars
take a quick tour of 600 years today: Snappy headlines,
tell stories of war and
analyze the rich history of
of journalism history, from Comic Sports pages. And
agedy, risking prisonment journalism, some view it in hieroglyphics to hypertext: “inverted pyramid” sty
to defend
terms of technological
the media, the message and writing that made stori tig
ee speech. And as you
progress—for example, the the politics.
and newsier.
n see here, reports have dramatic impact of bigger,
Technical advances and
Radio and television
come beloved characters faster printing presses.
brilliant ideas forged a new brought an end to
p culture, too, turning up
Others see journalism as a style of journalism. It was a newspapers’ media mono
movies, comics and TV specialized form literary
century of change, and
Why? Well yourself: Wh
ows as if guided by an
expression, one that’s
newspapers changed
did yo
cult McGraw-Hill
hand.
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Inside Reporting
6
Beyond breaking news
Slide
Beyond breaking news
The world of features
Generating story ideas
Feature style
Feature story structures
Writing profiles
Enterprise projects
 (continued)
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Slide
Beyond breaking news
(continued)
Investigative reporting
Package planning
Short-form alternatives
Writing editorials and columns
Writing reviews
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Slide
The world of features
Personalizing the
news with stories
 News stories focus
on timely, public
events.
 Features are more
personal.
• Include topics,
treatments, styles
not found in news.
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Features explore a
variety of topics
•Lifestyles
•Health
•Science and technology
•Entertainment
•Food
•Homes and gardens
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Slide
The world of features
10Popular feature stories
 Personality profile
 Reaction piece
 Human-interest
story
 Flashback
 Color story
 Consumer guide
 Backgrounder
 Personal narrative
 How-to
 Trend story
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Slide
Generating story ideas
“Hard” news, “soft” news
 Relative terms that
describe topic and
treatment of story.
• Expect serious, timely events
to be written in invertedpyramid style.
• Items that are less urgent or
somber make up “soft” news.
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Slide
Generating story ideas
Great stories are waiting discovery
TV, magazines,
newspapers, Web sites
Brainstorming
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Slide
Generating story ideas
Is it a good one?
 Where did it come
from?
 Is it original?
 Did it surprise you?
 Does the idea have
movement?
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 Is there a STORY
there?
 Is there tension?
 Is it true?
 Do you like the story?
© 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
Slide
Generating story ideas
Turn your idea into a story




See if it’s been done.
Focus your angle.
Do your research.
Write the story.
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Slide
Feature style
Some stories require a livelier,
looser, more literary voice
 Tom Wolfe dubbed it
“New Journalism.”
• Realistic dialogue.
• Vivid reconstruction
of scenes.
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• Viewed through the
eyes of the characters.
• Recording everyday
details.
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Slide
Feature style
Successful feature writers rely on
literary techniques




Syntax & phrasing
Voice & tense
Detail & description
Dramatic techniques
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Slide
Feature style
Successful feature writers…
 Helpful tips
• Write tightly.
• Stay objective.
• Vary sentence
structure.
• Read.
• Match treatment to
topic.
• Don’t overdo.
• Avoid 1st person.
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Slide
Feature story structures
Standard story structures
 How long should
this story be?
 What key points
do I need to make?
 Think visually.
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Slide
Writing profiles
Good profiles reveal feelings,
attitudes, habits and mannerisms
 How to research and
write successful
profiles
• Solicit your subject’s
support.
• Interview and observe.
• Find your focus.
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• Follow up with
interviews and
research.
• Structure your story.
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Slide
Writing profiles
Sample story structures for profiles
 Anecdotal lead
 Scene #1
• Engaging, revealing
small story to lure
readers in
• Observe subject in
action using dialog,
details, descriptions
 Nut graf
 Chronology
• Summarizes why this
person matters now
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• Recap of subject’s past
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Slide
Writing profiles
Sample story structures…
 Scene #2
• Another look at the
subject in action
 What lies ahead
• Plans, dreams, goals and
obstacles
 Closing quote
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Slide
Writing profiles
3Ways to paint a better portrait
1. Capture details.
2. Re-create scenes.
3. Add quotes and
dialogue.
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Slide
Week 9 Assignments
Beat Story #2 first draft
 Deadline: Wednesday, May 15 at 8 a.m.
Group work - TBA via email
 will cover material from Chapters 4, 5,
or 6
 I will assign groups. You will also be
able to choose which assignment you do.
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Slide
Next week:
Cover Ch.6, pages 126-136
Go over group work
Answer any and all questions related
to Beat story #1 and #2
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