NEWSWRITING

WHAT IS NEWS?
News is an event, idea, or opinion that is timely, that interests or affects large number of persons in a community, and that is capable of being understood by them. -M. Lyle Spencer School of Journalism Syracuse University

THE REPORTERS NOTEBOOK

News writers must be skilled at: 1. Seeing and hearing 2. Taking notes 3. Checking and verifying data 4. Analyzing and interpreting 5. Write clearly with 5WsH formula

ELEMENTS OF NEWS
1.

2.
3. 4. 5. 6. 7.

Timeliness Proximity Prominence Oddity Significance Conflict Human Interest

ELEMENTS OF NEWS
TIMELINESS When an idea or an opinion or an event is very recent and it answers some of the many questions and puzzles in the community that idea or opinion or event is timely.
Panalo si Erap? Sa pagkapresidente? Tsk, tsk, tsk.. Teka.Teka.Baki t ang date dito November 14, 1999?

ELEMENTS OF NEWS
PROXIMITY Write about news which happened in your locality or in your campus. Readers should be able to relate to the news especially if its a national news. Bibisita daw c PNOY dito sa IHMA Talaga?!? Naku, news worthy yan!

ELEMENTS OF NEWS
PROMINENCE People make news. People with high positions are always sources of news.
Sagutin mo nga ako doggie. Sino and sikat ngayon?

Hmmmsi Manny Pacquiao? O si Jake?

Sino iyon???

ELEMENTS OF NEWS
ODDITY

Something strange is always interesting.

I graduated class valedictorian!

ELEMENTS OF NEWS
SIGNIFICANCE

Progress has the element of significance.

CATS AS DANCE INSTRUCTORS!

DOGS AND CATS ARE NOW LOVERS

FRIED CHICKEN NO MORE! BIRD FLU NO MORE!

ELEMENTS OF NEWS
CONFLICT

Life is always laden with conflict, between good and evil, between the negative and positive.
Sino ang ama?Sino?!

Si.Si Sino nga ba?Ugh!?

NEWS WRITING
Inverted Pyramid The Inverted Pyramid of news suggests that news be told in order of most interesting or important to least interesting or important

Most interesting or most important

Least interesting or least important

NEWS WRITING
Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch a pail of water. vs. Jack suffered a skull fracture and Jill is in serious condition after the pair tumbled down a hill during their ritual water-carrying chores yesterday.

NEWS WRITING
The Newark Valley boys baseball squad played a game yesterday afternoon. vs. The Newark Valley boys baseball squad beat Candor at home yesterday in a thrilling extra-inning showdown between neighboring rivals.

NEWS WRITING
Most Important or Interesting

Least Important or Interesting

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LEAD WRITING
Most

journalists think the news lead is the most important part of the news story. It is an art work of concise information that captures the gist of a news story in one or two sentences.

LEAD WRITING

Depending on the nature of the story and its driving news elements, a lead can focus on one or a few of the six question words:

LEAD WRITING
Hat Banning: One Story, Six Possible Leads

Who? The Newark Valley Board of Education members passed a resolution last night banning the wearing of hats in all school district buildings. What? Hat wearing was banned in all school district buildings last night after the Newark Valley Board of Education passed a new resolution.

LEAD WRITING

Where? In Newark Valley last night, the board of education passed a resolution to ban the wearing of hats in all school district buildings.

When? Last night, the Newark Valley Board of Education passed a resolution banning hat wearing in all school district buildings.

LEAD WRITING
How?

By a 6-1 margin last night, the Newark Valley Board of Education passed a resolution banning hat wearing in all school district buildings.

Why?

Citing a pattern of early-onset baldness in Newark Valley teenagers, the board of education last night passed a resolution that restricts hat wearing in all school district buildings.

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LEAD WRITING
Too Many Choices? For local news, which is what we will be writing, it is important to know that most readers want to know news in this order:

LEAD WRITING
1. What happened or what will happen next?
2. Who was involved? And then When? Where? How? Why?

CHARACTERISTICS OF A GOOD LEAD

1. 2. 3. 4.

Includes only the 5Ws and the H which are important. Starts with the most important or the most interesting fact or both. It is short, usually 25-35 words. Begins with specific, interest-arousing word.

CHARACTERISTICS OF A GOOD LEAD

1.

2.

3.

Avoid starting with such words and phases as a, an, the; as a meeting, yesterday, last night, last week, recently; days of the week; according to, it is(will, was, will be) there is(are, will be). Avoid overloading the 1st sentence of the lead. Identify the person mentioned.

DIFFERENT KINDS OF LEAD

1.Cartridge Lead- short, abrupt Example Pres. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo warned yesterday all corrupt government officials.
2. Punch Lead- it surprises, intrigues Example There will be no classes at all levels tomorrow.

DIFFERENT KINDS OF LEAD 3.Picture Lead- gives pictorial account of

the event. Example Clutching his five year-old son, Pedro Sison, 32, could not control his tears to roll down on his cheek when he heard that his wife, Marivic, 30, and their two-year-old daughter, were among those killed in the Manor hotel fire incident in Quezon City.

4.Contrast Lead- give difference Example Seven years ago, she was only the vice president. Today, Mrs. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is the president, the highest government post in her country of more than 90 million Filipinos.

5. Question Lead- raises a question to make readers read more Example Can Sen. Panfilo Lacson be charged before the Ombudsman due to allegations that he had laundered millions of dollars in the US, Hong Kong, and Canada?

PLEASE TAKE NOTE!

In using the 5 Ws and 1 H formula in a straight news, it will eventually determine the news writers focus and sequence of the news story, not only in the making of the lead paragraph, but also the body or the development of the story.

TESTING THE FORMULA

WHAT: filing of criminal charges
by the police authorities

WHO: against a Mati City fireman WHY: for allegedly looting at the
height of a fire

WHERE: at IHMA, Delia

Tetreault Building

WHEN: yesterday

THE WRITTEN LEAD 1ST VERSION

Police authorities filed charges against a Mati fireman who was allegedly caught looting at the height of the multi-million peso fire that gutted Immaculate Heart of Mary Academy Delia Tetreault building last Thursday.

2ND VERSION
A Mati fireman was charged in court yesterday for allegedly looting at Immaculate Heart of Mary Academy Delia Tetreault building while the it was on fire.

3RD

VERSION OF THE LEAD

3RD VERSION
For looting instead of fighting a fire raging at Immaculate Heart of Mary Academy Delia Tetreault building Thursday night, a fireman is now facing a serious problem.

TH 4

VERSION

A Mati fireman realized this rather too late yesterday after he was held in court for allegedly looting at the height of a raging fire that engulfed Immaculate Heart of Mary Academy Delia Tetreault building in Mati Thursday night.

TESTING THE FORMULA

WHAT: collision between a speeding tricycle and a utility van WHO: Five graders were killed and three van passengers injured WHERE: at the corner of Rizal St. and Bonifacio St. WHEN: 5 p.m. last Thursday.

2ND TEST FOR THE FORMULA ST

VERSION

Five graders were killed and six van passengers were injured in a collision between a speeding tricycle and a public utility van at the corner of Rizal St. and Bonifacio St. at 5 p.m. last Thursday.

2ND VERSION
Five graders from a prominent school met sudden death when their speeding taxi rammed into a bus on Rizal St. and Bonifacio St. at 5 p.m. yesterday.

3RD VERSION
Five graders met sudden death in one of the worst road collisions at 5 p.m. yesterday.

4TH VERSION
Five graders might not know what hit them when their speeding taxi rammed into a bus yesterday.

Structure of the News Story

THE BODY OF THE STORY

LEAD

Body

CLIMAX SECONDARY INTEREST DETAILS

TYPES OF NEWS STRUCTURES

1.
2.

3.
4.

5.

Straight News Story News Feature Story Fact Story Action Story Quote Story

1. STRAIGHT NEWS STORY

The

Summary lead answers the most important Ws among the 5 Ws. The body is the elaboration of the Ws and the H.

1.STRAIGHT NEWS STORY

Summary Lead

Elaboration of W Elaboration of another W Further Elaboration

1.STRAIGHT NEWS STORY

The Summary Lead A man is now languishing inside the Mati City jail for trying to snatch the necklace of a 19year-old lady whom later proved to be more than his equal.

Police said 1.STRAIGHT Abelardo NEWS S TORY Beknoy, 21, of 738 Sto. Nino St., Mati City, apparently mistook Mary Yee Secondary Lead for the helpless victim. To his surprise, Yee turned out to be a brave lady.

1.STRAIGHT NEWS STORY

Details where the blow-by-blow Technique is used
Immediately, after Beknoy grabbed her necklace, Yee sprang out of the tricycle and ran after him.

1.STRAIGHT When NEWS S TORY she finally

Details overtook him, Yee collared him. Beknoy was not aware that he was running towards a traffic policeman who arrested him immediately.

2. NEWS FEATURE STORY

It is an informative discussion of news events or technical subjects in expository form. It is halfway between a news story and an editorial. Like the news story, it is factual, but its purpose is to give information and entertainment.

2. NEWS FEATURE STORY

LEAD

NARRATIVE

SURPRISE CLIMAX

The strains of Joy to the World came through the radio and the 58-yearold mother began to cry.

The Christmas carol reminded Conception Empano that it is the third holiday she will spend without her missing daughter Karen.

They are saying she could already be dead. I dont care. I know she is alive, the tearful mother said on Tuesday.
The young woman is among the 201 victims of forced disappearances listed by the human rights group Karapatan during the Arroyo administration.

3. FACT STORY
LEAD FACT

SECONDARY FACT 3
FACT 4

3. FACT STORY
The Department of Health recently declared that it will launch the Dengue Awareness Program in the province this coming September 1. Gabriel Morales, the DOH Provincial Director, also said in an interview yesterday that the agency will release the guidelines on how to prevent the spread of dengue.

4. ACTION STORY

Its not merely giving facts, but deals on the dramatic action incidents, description of persons as well as explanatory data. Write first a summarizing lead before writing it. Give sufficient attention to the elaboration of important information, background and interpretation.

4. ACTION STORY

LEAD INCIDENT TOLD

RETOLD MORE DETAILS RETOLD MORE DETAILS

RETOLD MORE DETAILS

Two pupils were wounded as the old stage in Immaculate Heart of Mary Academy crashed yesterday. The victims were identified as Rey Uy, 10, and Pete Sy, 11, both grade five students of St. Thomas More. Witnesses said that the two were busy practicing on stage when the old building suddenly crashed on the ground. Luckily, the two appeared with just minor bruises after the incident.

5.LEAD QUOTE STORY SUMMARY

QUOTE

SUMMARY

QUOTE

SUMMARY

RANKING THRU IMPORTANCE

A newswriter understands the situation that he is in and eventually demonstrates the rare ability to retell how the story happens in a clear, concise, and accurate manner ; that, then, is a sign that news exists.
THANK YOU!

THE END