· ~19VW

daily in the Forum, the main public square·

r ~ alism as a craft, a profession and even as a
~ : or business is over two centuries old. It was ancient Rome, was perh aps the world's . Ill
newspaper. Later, pamphlets, gazette8 first
made possible by the coming together of a number
books, news sheets, letters came to be te ' news
of technologies as well as several social, political
and economic developments. The main techno- 'news paper'. Those who wrote for them wrrned as
logies that facilitated the development of large- called news writers and later journalists.erefust
scale printing and distribution of print material Thus, journalism can be one of the
.. . b d . most
were the printing press. exc1tmg JO s aroun . One goes into work
frournalism is a form of communication based necessan·1y kn owmg . what you are going t not b
on\ sking, and answering, the questions Who? doing th~t day. J?urnalists ge! to n:ieet powe~
What? How? Where? When? Why? Journalism is people, mterestmg people, inspiring peopl
anything that contributes in some way in heroes, villains and celebrities. The chance :,
gathering, selection, processing of news and know something and to tell the world about it~
current affairs for the press, radio, television, film, exciting. One also gets chance to indulge apassion
cable, internet, etc. for writing and the opportunity to seek the truth
Journalism is a discipline of collecting, analy- and campaign for justice. And then there is the
zing, verifying, and presenting news regarding excitement of seeing your byline in print,
current events, trends, issues and people. Those watching your report on television, or hearing
who practice journalism are known as journalists. your words of wisdom on the radio.
Journalism is defined by Denis Mc Quail as paid As a craft Journalism involves specialization
writing for public media with reference to actual in one area (editorial, design, and printing)for
and ongoing events of public relevance. the reporters and the sub-editors for instance,it
entails writing to a deadline, following routines
Journalism can also be defined as: in a conveyor-belt like workplace, while respec·
1. The collection and editing of news for ting the divisions of labor in the newsroom and
presentation through the media the printing press. In earlier times, knowledge
2. The public press of typewriting and shorthand were the main
3. An academic study concerned with the
skills demanded. But today, computing an~
collection and editing of news or the
DTP skills are in demand for all areas 0
management of a news medium
4. Writing characterized by a direct presen- Journalism. 00
tation of facts or description of events As a profession, it is markedly different fr '
without an attempt at interpretation other established professions like medicine'. la; ,
5. Writing designed to appei_( o current management or teaching. While the establi~h 1
popular taste or public interesJ) professions require some specialized educattona
th
qualifications and training to be recruited to ~;
The words journalist, journal and journalism • rre!llP'
Journalism does not make any such requ . the
are derived from the French journal which in its essential. There is no bar to anyone entenn_g al
tum comes !tom the Latin t~rm diurnal or daily. profession, no matter what one'~ edu~at~~:Jll
The Acta Dmrna, a handwritten bulletin put up background or professional expenence 15·
an ·
,a~ t HATfS NEWS?
ia- s ;~s the word implies, news contain much that~
led 'fnew, informing people about something that has
1bt...:(just happened. But this is not happenfug always
tot as some stories run for decades and others are
J
>Se ! ~
r~ cled with a gloss of n~wness supplied to it.
ews is, anything out of the ordinary, iHs the
~e current happening~ t is anything that makes the
1
st 3 reader surprised and curious. News is anything
1
d that will make people ta~ ews is the issue for
ay discussions and debates. Any event, which affects
ia most of the people, interest most of the audiences ,
and involves most of the people, is news. Thus,
m news can be called an account of the events written
)r for the people who were unable to witness it.
a News is the written, audio, or visual construe·
~: tion of an event or happening or an incident. The
news is constantly in search of action, movements,
:: new developments, surprises, and sudde:
reversals, ups and downs of fate and facts an
n follies of the mankind.
t=--------:----'------:--------
IISWWW
News Reporting II
account of what is happening around us:It may Feature (+l-1500words): A news feature takes
:volve current events, new initiatives or ongoing ?ne step back from the headlines. It explores an
rojects or issues. But a newspaper does not only issue. News features are less time-sensitive than
pnnt news of the day. It also prints background hard ne~s but no les~ newsworthy. They can be
p · ·
analysis, opiruons, andhuman-m . terest stories. an effective way to wnte about complex issues too
The reporter chooses sto~ies from the flood of large for the terse style of a hard news item. Street
information and events happening in the world kids are a perfect example. The stories of their
and in their community. Stories are normally individual lives are full of complexities, which can
selected because of their importance, emotion, be reflected, in a longer piece. .
impact, timeliness and interest. Features are journalism's shopping center.
They're full of interesting people, ideas, color,
Types o~News lights, action and energy. Storytelling at its height!
Har.d'News (+/- 600 words): This is how journal- A good feature is about the people in your
~sts refer to news of the day. It is a chronicle of com11:1unity and their struggles, victories and
current events/incidents and is the most com- defeats. Thewritertakesailimportantissueof the
mon news style on the front page of your typi- day and explains it to the reader through
cal newspaper. comments from people involved in the story.
It starts with a summary lead. What happened? While writing a feature, remember to 'balance'
Where? When? To/by whom? Why? (The yourstory.Presenttheopinionsofpeopleonboth
journalist's 5 W's). It must be kept brief and sides of an issue and let the readers make their
simple,becausethepurposeoftherestofthestory own decision on whom to believe. No personal
will be to elaborate on this lead. Keep the writing opinions are allowed. The quotes from the people
clean and uncluttered. Most important, give the you interview make up the story. You are the
readers the information they need. If the federal narrator•
government announced a new major youth Editorial: The editorial expresses an opinion.
initiative yesterday, that is today's hard news. . The editorial page of the newspaper lets the
@ ard Tf..V:s stories make up the bulk o~!ttY.s w~ite~ comment on issues in th_e news. ~11
reportin~ d news consists of basic fac~ is editonals are personal but the t~pic~ must still
news of important public events, international be relevant to the reader . Editonals try to
happenings, social conditions, economy, crime, .• persuade the readers. Its goal is to move the
et,c. Thus, most of the material found in daily readers _to some S_Pecific action, to get them to
papers, especially from page it~ or news casts, .. agr~e with t~e wn~er, to support_or deno~ce a
deal in the hard news categorYlJhe main aim of cause, etc. It IS considered to be the most difficult
the harg.,,~s is to inform J writing among all the newspaper types of
Sof{News (+l-600 words): this is a term for all ~riting. Editorials ar: also important as ~
~Wnews that isn't time-sensitive.);oft news interpret and analyze issues for the reader~
includes profiles of people, p r6grams or
organizations. Most of news content is soft news. News st ructure
Soft news, if cleverly written and carefully Thestructureofanewsstory(hardandsoftnews
targeted can offer an altemative:,Soft news can and features) is simple: a lead and the body.
cover business or social trends.C:rypically, soft
st0ries have a human interest, entertainment focus The Lead
?r a statistical and survey approach) This gives a One of the most important elements of news
Jo~rnalist a chance to be creative.and ha~ fun writing is the opening paragraph or two of the
with the news. One major advantage of~ofter story. Journalists refer to this as the 'lead,' and its
~ew5'js that man1 of. t:he stories have a Jonger shelf function is to summarize the story and/ or to draw
life.Jhey can b~ at any ~ e practitioner the reader in (depending on whether it is a 'hard'
or reporter seems appropriat~ or 'soft' news story.
- i1V~l9VW
-.. ]H.OOA* +·
organ,- ..,- -- ·· ••'-'-•rma,,on
• Gather your notes, interviews and research
into a file.
happened recently.
News Reporting •

, Ti, tl fn'ess: Information has timeliness if it

• 'Recently' is defined by the publication

cycle of the news medium in which the
, Review your notes. information will appear.
, Look for a common theme. • For 'Newsweek,' events th~t happened
, Search your notes for good quotes or
during the previous week are timely.
interesting facts. • For a daily newspaper, however, events
, Develop a focus. that happened during the 24 hours since
, Write the focus of the article down in two ·
the last edition of the paper are timely.
or three sentences. • For Headline News, events that happened
during the past half hour are timely.
Writing and editing Information ~as prominence if it
, Remember you are the narrator, the involves a well-known person or organization.
storyteller. • If you or I trip and fall, no one will be all
, Don't be afraid to rewrite. that interested, because you and I aren't
• Be as clear and concise in the writing as well known.
possible. • But if the president of the United States
• Avoid run-on sentences. trips and falls, everyone will be interested
• Be direct. because the President is well known.
• Tell a good story. l,Jiefximity: Information has proximity if it
• Tell the reader what you think they want involves something happened somewhere
to know. · nearby.
• Always ask yourself what the story is • If a bus wreck in India kills 25 people, the
about. · · Canadian Newspaper will devote maybe
• Read the story out loud; listen carefully. three or four paragraphs to the story.
• But if a bus wreck in downtown Canada
News Value~ / kills 25 people, the Canadian Newspaper
Your lead should emphasize the most will devote a sizable chunk of its front page
newsworthy information in the story you are to the story.
trying to tell. But how do you figure out what \ C'!Pfl ~ Information has conflict if it involves
information is most newsworthy? The infor- some kind of disagreement between two or more
mation you consider most newsworthy depends people. ·
in part on your own values, experiences and • Remember how, when you were a kid,
knowledge. But some general guidelines exist. everyone would run to watch a fight if one
Below are several characteristics that can make erupted on the playground?
information newsworthy. The more of these • Fights have drama-who will win? - And
characteristics a piece of information has, the more . invite those watching to choose sides and
newsworthy the information is. root for one or more of the combatants.
Impact_Information has impact if it affects a • Good democracy involves more civil -we
! t of people. A proposed income tax increase, for
0 hope -conflicts over the nature of public
'.nstance, has impact, because an income tax policy. That's why the media carry so
mc~ease would affect a lot of people\ The much political news. Journalists see
accidental killing of a little girl during a s~ tout themselves as playing an important role in
between rival drug gangs has impact, too. Even the publk debate that forms the basis for
though only one-person -the little girl-was directly d~ cracy.
affected, many people will feel a strong emotional J:1- rdness: Information _has weirdness if it
response to the story. involves something unusual or strange.
11
II Journalism lJ:1V3/81!/lj
* 1H.nn'. f.
• Charles A. Dana, a famous editor, once through the medium
said, "If a dog bites a man, that's not news. broadca~t carry import;t news.
But if a man bites a dog, that's news!" persons 111 authority to th Slatelt\e~e~
• Dana was saying that people are interested 5. Conflicts between man ~P~0Ple.
1

in oht-of-the-ordinary things, like a man between man and environ... an ¾d

biting a dog. •..,1enb. <11.
out as news. These affect Us. "'eci\~
\ 9.irrency: information has currency if it is
related to some general topic a lot of people are
f
other. Natural phenomena 0ne..%t
calamities and disasters Inak Ike \rio]~
already talking about. . the present situations and k eUs awilre
• A mugging in downtown Murfreesboro growing violence in our soc~:t chttk;
generally won't attract much attention 6. New trends, events and ideas
from reporters at the Daily News Journal. of soft news and thus grasp~~th~f~
• But if the mugging occurred a day after a nation of people in the society.¾ 11!\a~
report by the FBI had named Murfreesboro brings about change and progr
the city with the state's fastest-growing. country. ess io1~
crime rate, the mugging would be big
news. 7. News focus on the economic, politic~ .
• People would respond to news of the mugg-
ing by saying, "See, here's an example of just
cultural aspects of a nation and ¾:
throughout the world learn abo 0~1
nation through news only. News O~e t
r
the kind of thing that FBI report was talking . . to the outside World
about. We've got to do something about the image of a nation onnsai

crime rate!" 8. Journalist may predict that something~

happen thus fo~ming a mental image of ii
Fung.ti~ of News event and thus mcrease the curiosity of~
audience making the news more and mori
\pr4s contains much that is new. 'News is relevant.
anything out of the ordinary.' 'News is anything
9. Reference to persons in news makes them
published in a newspaper which interests a large
more popular and famous. Elite persona-
number of people'. The main functions of news
are: lities crave to remain in news to keep ui
with their image though negative publici~
1. News informs people about anything
· too these days is seen as a mediumol
unusual that take place in the society. be~oming famous.
Mysteries, small or big, interest people and
10. Stories and pictures with the capacity lo
so mysteries are news. Ev'ents that affect
entertain or amuse an audience is alwari
people's lives are news; the more people
affected the bigger the news. · the main function of news. Entertainmenl
2. People learn something new every day
through news is done by carrying storie1
relating to showbiz, drama, sex, ana
through news they get from newspaper or
television. They read about things they humorous treatment by use of photo-
graphs or witty
have heard about and also would like to
read about.
3. News affects people and is capable of
News Sources
stirring widespread awareness. News Sources of new~ are everywhere. Ajournaiis!l·
touches the deepest emotion of the people surrounded by sources of potential _news5~
and appeals somehow to everyone. Thus ore features. A conversation with a friend,
news affects the government as well as the on a wall, an unexpected juxtaposition-all Jl\l i
common people. re~ult in a story if you keep your eyes~ ears:
4. Important messages and decisions of the mmd open. Some sources will be roulUlePo~
government are conveyed to the people of contact for journalists while others maybeh·,1
0 ff
s, some will be proactive, appro a( I•
 II Journalism

• Notice boards: Notices in shops, offices, you begin with the final score. A new
libraries, colleges and elsewhere may also a beginning, middle and an end. Ne: report ~
become a source of news. contrast to this will blurt out somethins stories ~
• Other media: Newspaper monitors other explain themselves. News reports g ilnd ther
. . are
papers plus TV, radio, news sites on the a~tive rather than m passive voice and are 111~s11)
web. And, in tum, each medium monitors in concise language. Paragraphs are sh Writter
other media. set in newspaper co1mnns. Shorter Par Ort so as ~
• People:Potential stories can be suggested by are more likely to keep the attention of agraph!
people you meet while at work, rest and Attribution meaning 'somebody sayings readers
is used in the news- reports to present a nteth'1ng
0
play. This can range from somebody
mentioning that they have just seen a views over which the reporters can a;ange o1
police car parked in their street to other remain neutral. Pear 10
substantial information provided by the Most news reports follow the Kiss and
common people. formula- Kiss standing either for 'keep it short lelJ
• Political parties:Contacts within parties can . 1e, s tupi'd .' Comple ilnd
simpIe' or 'keep i"t s1mp .
be a fruitful source of stories about rows abstract notions, ambiguity and unan 8, ..eXIfy,
and splits, while party spokespeople will " red
questions tend to be frowned upon and deleted out
be keener to let you know about the of news copy. News reports structure should have-
selection of candidates or launch of policy
• Stories should have the main idea given
initiatives. 10
the journalist for covering of an incident.
• PR companies: This industry provides the
• Content of the news report should be
journalists and us a peek into the media comprehensive and balanced.
world every day. So it is a major source for
• The intro should contain the main point of
the journalists.
the story and should be clearly developed
• Press conferences: Press conferences are
with the most important information
likely to be held to announce the results of
coming early in the story, followed by a
official inquiries or to unveil new appoint-
coherent, logical and readable structure. ,
ments. Fewer press conferences take place
• Personal comments should be avoided.
these days, as most journalists are too busy
• Facts should be presented logically.
to go and collect information that could be
• The style, context and facts should be
faxed or emailed.
accurate.
• Universities: Universities are a source of a
huge range of stories, whether it is ground The news reports aim is to meet the require- d
-
breakmg . research, an unusual degree ments
d ofSeveryday
. life
d as dlived by every ay
t like
sch eme or an e thica1 argumen.t They are rea
d' ers. o it 1arge 1 y
. epen . s on e emen s
1 . I aims
a 1so w h ere you wi·11 f'm d exper t s m . t rrectness, pace, variety
. and information. t
everything from aeronautics to the zodiac. o state the facts quickly and clearly.
(A News Report has three parts:
STRUCTURE AND SCOPE OF NEWS ~ e headline
'Always grab the reader by the throat in the \2;/"'Toe first paragraph
first paragraph, sink your thumbs into his \ 0 he remainder of the news story
windpipe in the second and hold him against The headline first attracts us. It stands o~tin
the wall until the tag line.' bold black type. It message is abrupt and O te:
-Paul O'Neill. startling. It makes us stop and look. It_tell:S ~o
quickly what the story covers. Its fu~ction ·tiJlg
(News report writing always starts with the
attract our attention. Though, the headline wn to
Jo-st important fact. When you report on a I
belongs to the copyreader's province and no
football game, you do not start with the kick-off;
the reporter's.
-
News Reporting

. he lead remains the primary concern of the is to be read and understood by others. Thus a
news writer. As the present day reader is the man story is like building blocks, which should be
ho both runs and reads, present day newspapers linked logically to each other. Therefore, there
wek to facilitate his getting the information should be continuity between the intro, the lead
s:ckly. The convention has developed of telling and the end of the news story.
~e main facts of a news story in its first lead Thus, the most popular format of news writing
paragraph. Writin? this l~ad also involves is the Inverted Pyramid:
answering the questions, which would occur to This is the most widely used approach in news
any normal person when confronted with the writing. The information is given in the
announcement of a news story. descending order of importan_ce. Thus, it has three
These questions, called the five W's are: parts:
Where?, Who?, What?, When?, Why?
Suppose the news story concerns a fire. In
writing the lead-the reporter would answer the
questions, 'What?' "Fire broke out," he would
write. He would answer the question, 'Who?' and
'Where?; by telling whose premises were burnt and
giving their location. He would answer "When"
by telling the time the fire broke out and how long
it lasted. 'Why?"-In this case the cause the usual
carelessly tossed cigarette butt. The reporter can
also answer the 'How' in this story in several ways
by describing the type of fire, or by answering 'How
Fig. 3.1: Inverted pyramid
much'? Here, he would estimate the probable lost
and find out if premises had been covered by
insurance and if so by what amount. • Lead-introduction paragraph
The lead forms the springboard for the • Support and supplement to the lead
reporter's leap into the story. The journalist should • Details on descending order of importance
keep in mind the elements of a good lead as he
may flop sadly if the lead turns out to be defective. Leads
The best way to gain journalistic facility is to The opening paragraph of the introduction
practice the writing of leads. paragraph of the news story is .called the lead.
The end is the conclusion of the news reports. Though in journalistic practice we also use this
From the headline and the lead one comes to the word for biggest headline on the front page of
rest of the story. The reporter constructs the model newspaper, calling it the 'lead story'. The main
11ews story after this pattern. He selects the most purpose of the intro or the lead is to make the
important incident or fact for his lead. Then he reader want to read on, motivate them to move
)roceeds by selecting the next most important further into the news story and state the important
ncident, fact or detail, the next most important facts first.
tfter that, and so on till he reaches least important Lead to a story"grabs the reader, informs the
>hase of all. Guided by his idea of news impor- reader, and teaches the reader how to read the rest
ance, the story assumes graphically the shape of of the story." A newspaper reader is likely to
mInverted Pyramid. The end will be at the peak spend only a few seconds deciding whether to
,f the inverted pyramid with the facts or incidents read a story. If the lead does not grab the reader,
1f least value.
the writer's work is in vain. The lead establishes
When writing a news story for an organization the direction your writing will take. A good lead
·ou should always retain the idea that your text grabs your reader's attention and refuses to let go.
 D Journalism

~ r words, it hooks the reader. Not every type Definition

of lead will work for every writer or for ev~ry Open with a definition of th
piece of writing and one has to experiment with discussing. It can be your ow e terni_ y
them. For writing a good news story, be sure to dictionary or textbook. If y n or coni.e? ate
have at least three sentences in your lead, dictionary or textbook, be suro~ take it 01l\ , f;
whatever type it may be. marks and give credit to the soe OUse qllot01li ,
. urce aljr,,
Example: Accordmg to Web t ,·
s er so·
·q
How to write an interesting Lead .
a government is the authority th 1Ctiona
Q uestion: Open with an interesting question that people and acts on their behalf. ~t serve81~;
relates to the main idea. government know what the peo 0 w can th
Example: Have you ever wondered how you 1
people do not vote? If we dope Want if the
would survive if you found yourself alone in the not v0 t e
government may act on its own behalf. e, the
wilderness? How would you defend yourself on the behalf of the people. lnsteact 0r
against predators? What would you eat? Where
would you find water? Opinion
R iddle: Open with a riddle that the reader can
Open with your opinion about the to · .
solve by reading further. You may want to give
similar to a bold and challenging statr;~~
the answer right away or save it for the conclusion. you let the reader know that it is your .' ~ut
Ex amp le: What textbook has no pages, is miles right away. O
Plil1on
wide, and smells like a creek? It's been around for
Example: In my opinion, the driving age should
millions of years. That's right-Outdoor School
be low.e~ed to fourtet;n. M~st teenagers are more
Announcem ent responsible than adults give us credit for bein
Just because we are teenagers does not mean;~
Open with an announcement about what is to are irresponsible and dangerous.
come. However, do not insult the reader by
saying something like, "I am going to tell you Well Known Quotation or Quotation from
0
about... " The reader should be able to figure out Famous Person
what you are writing about. If not, there is Open with a quotation that is well known or from
something wrong with what you have written, a famous person. Be sure to put quotations around
not with the reader.
the quotation and give credit to the person who
Example: The trait of voice is very important said it. Of course, the quotation must be directly
in writing. However, it is difficult to teach and related to your topic. A good source is a book of
even more difficult to learn. It is similar to athletic quotations. Look in the library or ask your teach~-
ability because it is more like a talent than a skill. Example: President John F. Kennedy once srud,
"Ask not what your country can do for you, and
Bold and Ch a llenging Statement ask what you can do for your count ry. I think
II
d,
A bold and challenging statement is similar to an today's Americans have forgotten Kenne ys
announcement, but is meant to cause some people message. Weexpectourcountryto take careofUS,
to disagree with what you say. It's like one side but we are not taking care of our country.
of an argument. It can be an opinion, but don't
immediately state that it is your opinion. Quotation Not from a Famo us Person . 1
Example: Using horses and cattle in the sport Open with a. quotation from a perso:he that is no
storyor
of rodeo is animal abuse. What makes it more famous. It could be a character from till must put
aggravating is that it is legal. According to the law, someone you know personally. Yo~ 5 the perso11
there is nothing wrong with chasing an animal it in quotation marks and give credit to
down, tightening a rope around its neck, knocking who said it. given the
it to the ground, and tying its legs together so it Ex ample: When I was a child, 1 wah it is n° 1
5

cannot move. "mother's curse" by my mom- O '

 News Reporting a
mean or evil. She just said, "When you a promise for some big benefit, it can make
ha~e children, they will act just like you." I offer, it can challenge the reader in some way, it
hed. Well, now that I have children of my can introduce some really compelling concept or
1au g 1amnot 1aughinganymore. The ,'mother's idea, or it can be something newsworthy.
0 wnI A headline is a window to the news story.
curse" really works!
Thus, a heading must fit, must tell the story, ~ust
personal Experience confirm to newspaper's standard, must not JUSt
0pen with something that has happened to you, be a label, must be safe and must not commit the
or a personal experience. It ~ould be~ part of the paper to an opinion. A good headline is one that
story, or it could be something that 1s not a part in less than a dozen words summarizes what a
of what you are writing about but still relates to reporter has said. The earliest newspapers had no
headlines on the front page; which was devoted
the topic.
Example: Although I did later in my room, I entirely to advertisements, and the headlines
never cried at my grandfather's funeral. I guess inside did no more than announce the subject of
that is why I felt so sad for the little girl standing the report. Today, every newspaper has its own
next to her grandma's coffin. She looked so lost style of headlining a story. Some newspaper give
and afraid. straight hard headings, while some other prefer
to give exciting and sensational headings. It
Figurative Language normally depends on the policy of the newspaper.
Begin with a simile (comparison using like or as), It has been found that all daily newspapers in
metaphor (comparison s.aying one thing is standard size generally prefer to give straight
another thing}, personification (giving something headlines and tabloid.newspaper throughout the
nonhuman human qualities), or hyperbole world give sensational headlines.
(exaggeration.) The figurative language must
Types of Headlines
relate directly to your topic.
Example: The pencil sharpener was always Banner Headline: A newspaper headline written
hungry. It ate my pencil every time Iwentto sharpen in large letters across the width of the page. When
it. It never seemed to do this to anyone's pencil butthe heading is given below the nameplate of the
mine. What was so special about my pencils? newspaper and covers all columns from left to
right, it is called banner headline. Some may call
Enumerated General Statement it streamer, which also covers the entire column
Begin with a general statement containing three but is normally given on the inside page.
or so ideas about your topic. The information Sometimes the streamer may leave one column.
given in the lead is general, not specific. The
specific details that support the general statement
will appear later in the paper. Finding the Keys The :-_ "·ic:n:.~~lutiooaries
Example:There are many characteristics that " · _ ..,,,.,., . , .... ,,vns,rnnc to Africa.
good teacher possesses. However, the three most ~ :.lVP thP Pbnl-'l Battl11d-.l'••-- I
1~portant characteristics include being a good
hstener, being knowledgeable about the subject, tw11ya li~~'.'~
or:,w, .-. -~
, T()P 0 1~!: Words Cannot Express -
ftfThP.ffl All?
and having a kind heart. All of the teachers who - .- ., he M1ht:irv J,'io-ht,· n.1"1 .
positively influenced me had all three of those Follow the l<ade,,"lving Cbina a bloody nose
characteristics in common. ,, At last. progress
1.:t'it Iuna
HEADLINES The lad l•\:ncrimcnt rr.~~; ;:;,;·;:;;~ to .\ '·"
Ah
. ea di'me grabs the reader's attention, targets
Le
1u,1accou: J lope for-rhcfTransnarenn·
....,.c:f"5 kl,w ... , ...,.,.... Op 1~ 11u nitlu i• l lo11tuni, ~•d
him or her by saying something meaningful, and ·
creates some·curiosity in the reader. It can make Fig. 3.2: A headline is a 'window· to the news story
ll"""""'"" 1 ,

- ----------~----~~~~~
I i ' I
'II
I I
II Journalism

I!i Skyline: For very exceptional and exclusive

events, the headline of the story is sometimes
3. It helps organize then
4. It indicates the relati~w~ on the Pa
I
I• given over the nameplate of the newspaper. It story. /iY,J,o fu 1°,. o. e ~P 0 rta 11cge,
1
. - 'v,- Of
means that the event is even more important than A good headline should b ~-'~
the authority of the newspaper. grammatically correct, stron e ac_cllrate,
Rectangle: In such headings, all the lines are immediate. It should catch th!' active, fresh1eai,
equal from left to right. Normally, it is of three reader'satt 'liQ
lines but sometimes it can be of 2 to 4 lines too. The two moS t basic rules for headlin en~
es·
Hanging indentation: (Right justification) the 1. They must be accurate. ·
heading with more than two or more lines which 2. They must fit the available s
pace
are justified on the right side and unjustified on For headlines to be accurate th ·
the left are called hanging indentation. writer must understand the article~ headline
Waist: This is of three lines where the first and before writing the headline; the copy :rou&hl1
the third line cover the column but the centerline doesn't have a good view of what the ~:rwho
is smaller and placed centrally. isn't likely to write a headline that conun ~says
Full one/one line: The headline is normally clearly and accurately. lUtica~
single line heading covering all the columns of the
story Accuracy tips:
Crosser/highlighter: Crosser are normally one 1. Spell check after-writing the display typ
line headline which is given in the middle of the 2. In particular, double-check any prop:r
story. Sometimes in the story, a few important names or any numbers.
points are highlighted in the middle of the story. The headline should sell the article to thi
They are also included in this category. reader:Tellreaders whytheyshouldbeinterested
Flash: A recent development in the newspaper Every news story headline should have an active
is to highlight the stories of inside pages on the first Verb. Headlines on feature stories can be more
page, just below the flag. creative. But aim for complete thoughts. Tell the
Over line: This is also called the eyebrow or strap story, but avoid the "clears hurdle" or "man dies'
line. This is normally given over the main heading. phenomena. Get the most important elementfust,
Oval: in such headlines, middle line is longer the least important head element last.
than the above and below lines. This is normally Attribute heads that convey opinion. If the
of three lines. lead needs attribution, chances are the headline
Multi deck headings: the descending lines get will, too. Most times, attribution will go at the
smaller in size, after the main heading end of the headline . Headlines should be
Sub-heading: these are the small subsidiary accurate in T-0ne! Don't put a light headline on
headings in the body of the story a serious story. Be careful not to put a fir5!-da~
Symbolic headline: this headline will show the head on a second-day story. Match the tone_ote
r.
special e f 1ects o fth e story '
the story. Be original an d crea ti"ve, butnottnan
Left step: here the lines of the headline are and cliche. If you do employ word play~~r ~
justified on the left and unjustified on the right. idiom or common phrase, be sur~ th; n}:isely
Step line: the headline with two or more lines, exactly the same. The headline will r g •th
displayed so as to give an effect of a stair. (Ladder) otherwise. If you use a pun, be ~ones;:n1
Inverted pyramid: in this heading, there are yourself. Will it make the reader srnil~, ~rWrite a
three or more than three lines which are centrally Don't repeat the lea4 in a head;~~n't give
setfromlargetosmall. Insomecases,therecould better headline than the lead. An thathas a
be two lines only, set in such a fashion.
. Jv- a..c:.lQ;.
(!unctions of Headllne 1\ JM.ifi
J.µ
surprise ending. Be aware of any r;
away the punch line of a feature story ·ntended
of soJlle
double meanings. Real-life exaJilP ean wiJlter
1. It gets the reader's attention. headlines that were published: Old~dieted for
2. ItLummarizes or tells about the article. sticks icy finger into Virginia; teens 1J1

CLM_lolt_o 1
 News Reporting

drowning in lake; FBI ordered to assist Atlanta in • A void repeating bugs or page titles in
child slayings. headlines. For example, in a regular column
Avoid Bad Breaks at the end of lines, such as that runs with the bug 'Insider Trading,'
dangling prepositions or conj~ctions. A void avoid using the word 'Insiders' in the
ords such as mull, eye, rap, hit, and slam, vie, headline.
:Ssail, and seen and bid are headline weaklings. • A void using the same word in several
Alter your approachtiieet away from them. Look headlines that appear on the same page.
for a fresh approach.JI . This carieasi}ybore the reader.
Don't go for the obvious:On fire-related stories, ( '~ iting Headline ·
for example, stay away from verbs such as spark
and sn.uff; on storm stories, stay away from verbs • Best headline writers are spontaneous and
such as spawn, dump, blow, chum. In articles, creative; the.best headlines instantly come
hurricanes always seem to chum, and tornadoes to you. .
are always spawned. • Headline writers have to be the best wnters
at the newspaper.
In page layout /. • Many times, the best headlines you come
• The la you{ ~di tor should make the up with cannot be printed! . _
headlines work with the graphics and the • Continuity leads to better headlines; one must
art on the page. Most reader surveys show write them, day after day to get good at it.
that newspaper readers look first at photos • Read others' headlines to get ideas, but
on a page, then headlines. doing so isn't necessarily going to make
• The page designer should leave ample you a better headline writ~r.-
room so writers can create good headlines. • The most-effective headlines are those that
Also, the layout editor should vary the size give an old cliche a new twist; readers are
and shape of headlines to accurately grade familiar with the cliche, but something
the news elements for the reader. different about it will reel them in.
• Some basic types of headlines: banner •. The more conversational the headline, the
(streamer),hammer, kicker or eyebrow (above more the readers will like it.
the main headline), sidesaddle, deck (usually • Don't be so quick to abandon using articles
half the point size of the main headline), drop, such as 'a,' 'and' and 'the'; sometimes these
read-in, read-out, jump heads. words are needed for clarity. Also,
headlflle styles change over time.
Headline Technicalities • Four-part test for each headline:
• Don't get into the habit of relying on
squeezing or stretching the headline type 1. Is it accurate?
to fit the space. To trained eyes, it can look 2. Is it clear?
sloppy, especially when the "doctored" 3. Is it proper in tone?
headline appears near other headlines. 4. Does it have a twist?
• In general, commas are used to replace Types of News Writing
'and'; semicolons are used to split multi
sentence headlines. Many desks do not Every news story has to have a focus, which could
allow ·colons to indicate attribution, except be a person or an event. The story emerges sharper
in rare cases, so· it might be best to avoid when the focus is clear and blurred when the focus
that usage altogether. is unclear. A news story is built on a central idea
• Some headlines words to avoid: slate, (theme), sometimes on two or three central ideas.
solon, nix, eyes, acronyms, names of So it is called as single element story or two-
people who are not well known. Don't element story or three-element story depending
convict someone in a headline (unless the on the number of themes it has.
~tory is about a conviction) -use 'in' Journalists use many different kinds of frame-
mstead of 'for.' works for organizing stories. Journalists may tell
 1"
around Which the -......___J 3O':l -
repo~ters, correspo~~WspaPer r 0 <
who is considered ents, repo .
be found in the ne!e head of nl \\~~\~~'t\1~
n~ws channel. Toda rooll\ of any ~,,~'i\\,•.
bit modernized y the scene in newsPa
· as everyth. new Per
computers instead f Ing is d sroo11/
r shape of the newsro o desk, Wne thro ~a
>r production of th om, it is indisp hateve/~n
' e news ston· ensab1 . lne
es. el!\tn
>li AGENCY e

A news agency is an or .
nd established to suppl gani.zation of jo
zations in the nei news reports tourna1~~
,.3). magazines andrad· sdtrade: news organi.
' 10an tel · · Pap
They are also known as _evis1onbroactcase1rs,
• Wire se · ers
ing services. In other Word l'V1ces or n ·
• . s, a news ews
git organization which collects agency isa
supplies it to different new or gathers news an~
ws- rad_io stations and television :apers, magazines,
to its services. News gath anndelssubscribin,
ier- reporters/ correspondents . ere /rep orted boy
. 1 is sent to new
via e ectronic tele-printers or com spapers
~nts newspapers in turn puters. These
, , pay a monthly subscri .
to use news agencies for the news th ption
.ood Ne • ey receive
ws agencies can be corporations that sel
me- news (e.g. Reuters and All Headline News
(AHN)), coo~erati:7es composed of newspaper,
lvity that share _therr articles with each other (e.g.AP),
both commercial newswire services which charge
organizations to distribute their news (e.g.Markel
lefa- Wire, Business Wire and PR Newswire).
!port Governments may also control 'news agencies,'
ruse particularly in authoritarian countries, like Chin.a
and the former Soviet Union or non-profit orgruu·
1ece- zations operated by both professionals and
nvol- volunteers. Australia, Britain, Canada, and m
:
and other countries also have govemment-fubn ed
news agencies. A recent nse · mm· · ternet·, asas a
tews- alternative news agencies 1 e 'Scoopd' ,have
. l'k 1

shun component of the larger altema ti e me ia

, asbeillg
emphasized a 'non-corporate view, fbusilles5
every largely independent of the pressures 0
media. are hard neiv'.
Jart of News agencies generally prep be usedb)
from stories and feature articles tfiat~hanJittleorro
acing, other news organization . s wit to other neivs I

epivot modification, and then sell them

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- - - - - - - -,,( )--@~ ~ __,,____ f-,__ News Reporting
. . .IM.f-6 i'rn vl.. CQ ct . f\W O:.()lr,..
~tions. They provt~e thes~ artic es m bulk- ·operations of the-Associated Press of India and the
mcally through wire services (originally Indian operations of Reuters soon after India's
they used telegraphy; today . · they
di 'dfrequently use independence on ·August 27, 1947. It prov1'des
the In. temlliet) · Corpora.tions, malsvt uals, analysts news coverage and information of the region in
and_ mte gence ~?enoes may o ~ubs~be. The both English and Hindi.
busmessp~opositionofnewsagenci~smightthus India's largest news agency, Press Trust of
be responsible for th~ current trends m separation India is a non-profit sharing cooperative owned
of fact based reporting from Op-eds. by the country's newspapers. PTI subscribers
include 450 newspapers in India and scores
News Agencies in India abroad. All major TV /Radio channels in India and
The government of independent India, under several abroad, including BBC in London, receive
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, had begun encouraging the PTI Service. With a staff of over 1,300 including
Indians to start their own Indian news agencies, 400 journalists, PTI has over 80 bureaus across the
so that these would give a more balanced picture country and foreign correspondents in major cities
of the developmental activities going on at the of the world including Bangkok, Beijing, Dhaka,
time. Jerusalem, Johannesburg, Islamabad, Katmandu,
Encouraged by the government, some major Kuala Lumpur, London, Moscow, New York,
newspapers joined together to form a trust, and Washington and Sydney.
then set up independent India's first news agency, Available in two forms: The'core' service covers
the Press Trust of India (PTI) in 1949. Ittook over major developments in diverse fields in a compact
the business of the Associated Press of India, which form. A more comprehensive segmented service
was in the process of winding up. The APihad been allows papers to pick additional inputs from
a subsidiary of the Reuters. The PTI functioned as segments of their choice. National/Regional,
the only agency for the next eleven years. It is Economic/ Commercial, International, and Sports.
indeed surprising to know that although both PT1 Core service puts out about 40,000 words and the
and the United News of India (UNI) are full-segmented service upto 100,000 words per
professional rivals, the UNI owes·its birth to PTI. day. Available in two packages to suit the needs
Since PTI had little competition, its working of small and big newspapers, PTI Photo provides
was not considered well enough for the standard pictures on the national, foreign and sports scenes
of a news agency. The PTI Board of Directors felt via satellite, dial-up and hand delivery. The full
that something needed to be done to pull it out of color service of the Associated Press of America
its lethargy. One immediate solution was that (AP) is also made available through PTI.
another Indian agency should be set up to
History
compete with the PTI. The story of PTI is virtually the story of
Thus the United News of India was formed in
independent India. The run-up to_ Independe~~e
1961 and registered under the Societies Act. Like had also thrown up ideas of runnmg free India s
PTI, the UNI was also lucky to inherit the assets own national news agency as an objective
of the United Press of India, then in the process disseminator of information ab~~t a resurg~nt
of winding up. The PTI had headquarters in nation, freed of the foreign yoke. The evolution
Bombay, though the main administration of the concept of a national news agency was the
continued to be in Delhi, while UNI has its head direct consequence of the spirit of independenc_e
office in Delhi. Another news agency, the Asia that swept the country since the days of the Quit
~ews International (ANI) came up in the late India Movement. "The desire to shake off the
eighties, but is yet to start all-India operations. . . domination in the field of news supply
unpena1 . h ,, 'd
was at the heart of this evolvmg thoug t, sai
Press Trust of India (PTI)
Ramnath Goenka, the fearless press baron and
Press Trust of India is a nonprofit cooperative
among the Indian newspapers. It took over the freedom fighter.
 lh•t ~oumalism I

~ o n ment, democracy, human rights, ~omen Syndicates News Agency -..........._

and children 's issues. The agency carries out
Print syndication is a fo .
interviews of important personalities on issues
which news articles, colUU: of 8 Yttct·
of national , regional and international
importance. made available to newspap;r0 rconu::aijo~ ,
There are several prominent 8 8 a~d. 'l1a!ii11a
Objectives of the Agency operating across the globe suJ;"d1cation
• Promote and practice non-partisan, Times News Service, Tribun : l'heNServ~
objective journalism. North Star Writers Group ed.ia s~'.tlltl
Service, Family Features Edit~ . ul ardian~'cea,
Serviria s-n 1dicat'~e,.•1
• Identify problems facing present-day . T'rmes Syn d 1cation
Ind1an '
society.
Press Syndicate, which proVide nee ctnd. lJl\ive,
• Skill development of the journalists.
• Report on activities in the development content to various other publicati~Ws anct !if~~
reprmt. ng . d grant perrn • ons
. h ts an . · 'h.
•ney ·,~
field, by both government agencies and non- . .f bl" . iss1ons t0 011er
government organizations. parties or repu 1shmg content of . other
• Report on issues related to human resource own copyrights. . Whichthey
development, including questions of human - Some of the senior most ·our .
1
rights and gender equality. country today are so popular thnat1ists 1·nthe
• Reflect public opinion on important issues demand for them from many new: th ereisa
result is that most newspapers dPapers. 'Jne
through surveys based on scientific
methodologies. publishing the same articles proVided: lllind
to their prestige by including the name ;~anadd
~t
• Reflect national and international view- 0
points on the process of poverty alleviation known journalists in their colum esweij.
.
1ouma Iis t s b ecome synd 1cated
' columnistns. Uch
and struggles of the poor for economic s.
progress.
• Conduct special dialogues or discussion
Obje ctivity in News 'f" f. Q c\,
meetings with policymakers and opinion News is a factual report of an event, not a report
leaders on issues of national importance. as seen by a biased person or seen as a reporter
might wish it to be seen. The reporter should be
A feature is something that finds its impact as impartial and honest as possible. In fact, ifa
outside or beyond the realm of the straight news reporter does have a bias, sometimes he or she
story. It is, thus, not bound by restrictions of time, declines to do the story, or, more often, bendsover
though it must be topical. There are numerous backwards to make sure both sides are covered
feature agencies operating in the country today. equally. Is total objectivity humanly possible?We
The oldest and best known among them is the all have backgrounds, biases, and emotionsthat
Indian News and Feature Alliance (INFA). Others help make up who we are as people, and tu~g
include the Indian Press Agency (IPA), Gemini them off completely is pretty impossible.
Feature, National News Services, Newsmen's Sometimes biased reporting can happen
Features and UFO Features. .
inadvertently because the repor te~ tries tobe
These agencies solely depend on freelance clever or make a story more interes~g. . le of
writers. The writers may be aligned to some of Objectivity is a significant prttt~f g10
them on a regular basis or work on a piece-to-piece Journa. 1tsttc
· . pro,-,:esstona
. zt·sm,· Accor jrness,
in
1
basis. The agencies then mail these features to all scholars, objectivity may refer to f:rtisatl"
their clients, thus leaving the clients free to choose. disinterestedness, factuality, an~ no;prneaniJlg
Thus, it may happen that the same feature may
ship. The term therefore l~cks a_5~~ese vari~
be published by more than one newsl:'aper or as1·ournalists and the public use it~ alisJJl 15
magazine. However, most feature agencres try to ways. In many countries, advocacYJ ourn I
f rofessiona
avoid selling the same feature to more than one considered as a legitimate sort O P
journal in a _city. journalism.
 News Reporting Ill
ALrding to scholars of journalism, . to face unpleasant facts just as much as anybody
~~lists and publics often tend to identify els9
objectivity in its absence. Few journalists would
make a claim to total neutrality or impartiality. Report Writing for all Media
However, most strive toward a certain modicum News report writing always starts with the most
of detachment from their own personal biases in important fact. When you report on a football
their news work. In Discovering the News (1978), game, you do not start with the kick-off; you
sociologist Michael Schudson argues that "the begin with the final score. A news report has a
belief in objectivity is a faith in 'facts', distrust J;,eginning, middle and an end. News stories in
in 'values,' and a commitment to their segre- contrast to this will blurt out something and then
gation." In the United States, an objective story explain themselves. News reports are mostly
is typically considered to be one that steers a active rather than in passive voice and are
middle path between two poles of political written in concise language. Paragraphs are short
rhetoric. The tenets of objectivity are violated to so as to set in newspaper columns. Shorter
the degree to which the story appears to favor paragraphs are more likely to keep the attention
one pole over the other. of readers. Attribution meaning 'somebody saying
According to some, it refers to the prevailing something' is used in the news- reports to present
ideology of newsgathering and reporting that a range of views over which the reporters can
emphasizes eyewitness accounts of events, appear to remain neutral.
corroboration of facts with multiple sources and Most news reports follow the 'Kiss and tell'
'balance.' It also implies an institutional role for formula- Kiss standing either for 'keep it short and
journalists as a fourth estate, a body that exists simple' or 'keep it simple, stupid.' Complexity,
apart from government and large interest abstract notions, ambiguity and unanswered
groups. questions tend to be frowned upon and deleted out
Others hold it should mean reporting things of news copy. News reports structure should have-
without bias, as if one just came to Earth from • Stories should have the main idea given to
another planet and had no preconceived opinions the journalist for covering of an incident.
about our behavior or ways . This form of • Content of the news report should be
journalism is rarely practiced, although some comprehensive and balanced.
argue it would lead to radical changes in • The intro should contain the main point of
reporting. the story and should be clearly developed
StiB others hold it to mean that journalists with the most important information
should have something like a neutral point of coming early in the story, followed by a
view, not taking a stand on any issues on which .coherent, logical and readable structure.
there is some disagreement. Instead, journalists • Personal comments should be avoided.
are simply to report what ''both sides" of an issue • Facts should be presented logically.
tell them. Some even extend this standard to the • The style, context and facts should be
journalist's personal life, prohibiting them from accurate.
getting involved in political activities, which The news reports aim is to meet the require-
necessarily requires taking a stand. men ts of everyday life as lived by everyday
There is some dispute about whether readers. So it largely depends on elements like
, ob1·ec tiv,ty
· can really exist. How do we know the directness, pace, variety and information. It aims
· !~~th? Well, objectivity is like virtue; it's the to state the facts quickly and clearly.
mg you always fall short of, but the thing
hou always strive toward. Opinion journalists A news report has three parts:
ave to be objective just as much as straight • The headline
reporters · Opm10n
· · Journalists
• too have to be • The first paragraph
ablet0 ' ' • The remainder of the news story
see reality wholly and truly. They have