Journalism 101

1
Journalism 101

• Just the facts, please!
• A presentation by Mike Duffin

2
The Inverted Pyramid
3
Using the inverted pyramid

• Organize the facts
• What information is essential?
• Who are your sources?
• Why should we read this?

4
The lead

• This is the most important part of any story
• After reading the lead, readers decide whether
  they want to continue on
• Leads should not be more than 34 words

5
Types of leads

• Summary lead
• Delayed lead
• Anecdotal lead

6
Summary lead

• Summarizes what happened
• With this lead, the reader will get a general
  idea of what the story is about
• The Bears won their season opener 42-16 Sunday
  afternoon in San Diego against a Charger team
  considered by many to be a Super Bowl contender.
• Cedric Benson scored three touchdowns (how) as
  the Bears (who) defeated the Chargers 42-16
  (what) Sunday (when) afternoon in San Diego
  (where).

7
Delayed lead

• This lead is broken into two sentences
• The first is short and allows the writer some
  degree of creativity
• The second provides the real information
• Its time to rewrite the history books, asterisk
  or not. (This is short and catchy.)
• With all the controversy surrounding his alleged
  steroid use, Barry Bonds broke Hank Aarons
  all-time home run record on Tuesday night during
  a 4-3 loss to the Nationals in San Francisco.
  (Here is the delayed lead.)
• The 44-year-old slugger hit a 374-foot shot into
  the right fields seats at SBC Park in the fifth
  inning off of Washington pitcher John Adkins.
  (Additional information.)

8
Anecdotal lead

• This lead puts a personal spin on the story
• On Monday, Jackie Benson was cleaning her son
  Johns clothes in preparation for his first year
  of college. On Tuesday, she was making his
  funeral arrangements.
• John Benson, 18, was shot by a stray bullet
  outside his Calumet City home at about 636 p.m.
  Monday. He was taken to Advocate Christ Hospital,
  where he was pronounced dead on arrival.
• For the third time in a week, gang-related
  violence has claimed the life of an innocent
  bystander.
• It just isnt right, Jackie Benson said. My
  son was never involved in gangs. He was a good
  student with a bright future.
• Police spokesman Pat King said no arrests have
  been made in the shooting, although he added that
  there are several leads.
• Benson was set to attend Purdue University, where
  he had a scholarship to play basketball. The
  6-foot-5 guard earned All-State honors after
  scoring 25 points per game in his senior season
  at Thornwood High School.

9
Sources

• Who should you quote?
• What type of quotes should you use?
• Look for sharp, to-the-point quotes
• Dont be afraid to ask the same question twice
  (just word it differently)
• Do not publish a cliché response such as, Were
  giving it our all or Were taking it one day at
  a time

10
Facts

• Make sure that you answer the who, what, where,
  when, why and how
• Is the information correct?
• Is every name spelled right?
• Is there any other information that is vital to
  your story?