Profile Articles

1
Profile Articles

• Notes / Helpful information
• (please copy down)This will help you write your
  articles for the quarter project!

2
What is a profile article?

• A "profile article" is a newspaper article that
  explores the background and character of a
  particular person (or group).
• The focus should be on a news angle or a single
  aspect of the subject's personal or professional
  life.
• You can cover the background info, but focus the
  article around something interesting.
• This is where you try and find the story in your
  subject. (something interesting, new, and unique)
• Remember make it newsworthy this is how!

3
The Interview Questions

• Your main subject
• When interviewing, encourage your subject to open
  up and express significant thoughts, feelings or
  opinions.
• Do so by asking open-ended questions that are
  well-planned.
• Your two secondary subjects
• Ask them for anecdotes / interesting stories,
  etc.
• Gather information that will help you ask better
  questions of your profile subject, or of the next
  person you interview.

4
How to start?

• The article should begin with the reason the
  subject is newsworthy at this time.
• Your lead paragraph should focus around the
  reason that person is newsworthy. That is what
  will draw your readers in.
• You can go back and build in the details later
  (through the body of the article).
• This is the ONE time you can get away with NOT
  including all the 5 Ws and H in your lead. (But
  they should definitely be in the article
  somewhere.)

5
The Lead Paragraph 2 ex. of good profile leads

• As a young girl growing up on the South Side of
  Chicago, Mae C. Jemison watched telecasts of the
  Gemini and Apollo spaceflights and knew that that
  was her destiny. No matter that all the
  astronauts were male and white and that she was
  female and black. She simply knew she would be a
  space traveler.
• Now a 35-year-old doctor and engineer, Dr.
  Jemison has realized her dream, launching into
  orbit yesterday as one of the shuttle Endeavor's
  sever-member crew. In the process she has become
  the first African-American woman to go into
  space. ...

6
What about the background information (the
non-newsworthy stuff)?

• Biographical material is important, but should
  not be overemphasized the biography is
  background to the news.
• Ex. of biographical information where they went
  to school, name of spouse, where they live, etc.
• Readers should be allowed to better understand
  the subject by seeing this person in the context
  of his or her interests and career, educational
  and family background.

7
Now

• Now that you know a bit more about a profile
  article.
• Look, again, at your interview questions. You may
  want to change some things (for example less
  biographical info. questions)
• Remember... You need
• 20 questions for your profile subject
• 20 additional questions for your secondary
  subjects
• 10 questions for each (different questions)
• You need to spend the rest of the period working
  on your questions they will be due tomorrow at
  the beginning of class!