Few more style things

Style

• Companies are an “it” not a “they” (applies to governments and other organizations)

“Nike released its new Air Haley Miller volleyball shoe Monday during a lavish New York event.”

Style

• Most journalism is in past tense. He “said” not “says” (unless you’re doing live TV)

• First source reference: Full name and title; after that, last name

“The Air Miller shoe is flying off the shelves,” said Phil Knight, chief executive officer of Nike.

Knight said the shoes are the exact model Miller wears in competition.

Mas style stuff

• It’s = it is• Its = possessive

“Gardner said that it’s impossible to get free shoes from Nike after its impressive first quarter.”

Stop with the style!

• Make sure it’s a proper noun before you upper case

Not:“Williamson said she plans to attend College at FSU and major in Veterinary science.” But:“Williamson said she plans to attend college at FSU and major in veterinary science.”

Almost the end of style

• Use shorter grafs. From now on, all grafs in written assignments will be two sentences or less!

And don’t forget color!!

• What is your source wearing?• What is in their office?• What were they drinking?• Who called them during interview?• Do they squint, sigh, fidget, avert eye contact?• What kind of car do they drive?

Which brings us to ledes (or leads)

• Lots of options in ledes• But most popular for hard, breaking news is

the summary, inverted pyramid lede

Sidebar

• Hard news: breaking or serious news• Soft news: personality features, lifestyle

stories, human interest, celebrities

Traditional journalism starts with the Inverted Pyramid

• Summarize first, explain later• Information is arranged from most important

to least important• Best way of delivering “hard” news in all

media, from dead-tree newspapers to smart phones to broadcast

• 69 percent of stories in papers use IP, as do most TV, radio and web stories

Why Inverted Pyramid?

• Saves readers time and editors space• Condenses information efficiently so readers

can grasp facts quickly• It’s still the most important tool in any

journalist’s box... you’ve got to master this

Writing great ledes

• Remember your five Ws and an H

Writing great ledes

• Remember your five Ws and an H• Remember what makes news

Writing great ledes

• Remember your five Ws and an H• Remember what makes news• Ledes are short: almost always less than 30

words. Count ‘em!

Writing great ledes

• Remember your five Ws and an H• Remember what makes news• Ledes are short: almost always less than 30

words. Count ‘em!• Generally a single sentence; can be two if

you’ve got great materials. But let’s aim for one-sentence ledes

Writing great ledes

• “If you can master the process of writing ledes – identifying key facts and expressing them concisely – you’ll have a solid command of the craft of journalism.”

Writing great ledes

• Collect all your facts

Writing great ledes

• Collect all your facts• Sum it up, boil it down

Writing great ledes

• Collect all your facts• Sum it up, boil it down• Prioritize the five Ws (and an H)

Writing great ledes

• Collect all your facts• Sum it up, boil it down• Prioritize the five Ws (and an H)• Rethink, revise, rewrite

Writing great ledes

• Collect all your facts• Sum it up, boil it down• Prioritize the five Ws (and an H)• Rethink, revise, rewrite• Is it clear?

Writing great ledes

• Collect all your facts• Sum it up, boil it down• Prioritize the five Ws (and an H)• Rethink, revise, rewrite• Is it clear?• Is it active?

Writing great ledes

• Collect all your facts• Sum it up, boil it down• Prioritize the five Ws (and an H)• Rethink, revise, rewrite• Is it clear?• Is it active?• Is it wordy?

Writing great ledes

• Collect all your facts• Sum it up, boil it down• Prioritize the five Ws (and an H)• Rethink, revise, rewrite• Is it clear?• Is it active?• Is it wordy?• Is it compelling?

Writing great ledes

• Collect all your facts• Sum it up, boil it down• Prioritize the five Ws (and an H)• Rethink, revise, rewrite• Is it clear?• Is it active?• Is it wordy?• Is it compelling?• Is it news??????

On deadline….

• You are a hard-news reporter• You are writing for tomorrow’s paper and

website• Write a lede and second graf from the

following facts• Use summary, inverted pyramid style lede• Less than 35 words in your one-sentence lede!

Rod Thomson

Rod Thomson

• Homeschool parent and former journalist• Worked for Sarasota Herald-Tribune and

Observer group• Do background research on Rod• Write up 10 questions you want to ask him:

you will turn these in after Rod leaves• Rod can speak eloquently about being a

Christian in the secular work of journalism

Rest of assignment for 10/8

• Pages 42-45 of Inside Reporting