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Ledes/interviews/meetings

Ledes/interviews/meetings. JRNL 13 – Hofstra University Prof. Vaccaro. Today’s roadmap. Assignment No. 1 is due! News quiz No. 3 Lecture on ledes , and more! For next class …. Intro to leads. Leads are critical to great news stories. Must tell readers the central point.

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Ledes/interviews/meetings

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  1. Ledes/interviews/meetings JRNL 13 – Hofstra University Prof. Vaccaro

  2. Today’s roadmap • Assignment No. 1 is due! • News quiz No. 3 • Lecture on ledes, and more! • For next class …

  3. Intro to leads • Leads are critical to great news stories. • Must tell readers the central point. • Leads must be written in clear, simple language. • Leads with fewer words help the reader grasp the story quickly. • Leads are rooted in facts.

  4. Leads play a critical role • Essence: First chance the reader has to know what story is about. • Simplicity: Don’t let over writing get in the way. Present facts and get out. • Clarity: Readers must understand the story before moving on, clear writing gives readers what they need. • Concrete, specific: Nothing vague, nothing that provides pieces to the puzzle. It’s not a novel, it’s a news story. • Concise: Tight, sleek sentences prep readers for next graph.

  5. More notes on leads • Must know the central point of story • Why is it news? What makes IT a story? This should be instinctive. • First sentence is generally declarative and follows S-V-O approach: Subject-Verb-Object: “The school raised tuition” • S: School • V: Raised • O: Tuition

  6. Examples of leads • Source:BBC / via jourprosem.blogspot.com • Article: Deadly landslide hits town in Southern Mexico • URL: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-11429439 • Lead: A landslide triggered by heavy rain has hit a town in southern Mexico, killing at least four people and engulfing a number of houses, officials say. • Reason it's a good lead: This lead does a good job of capturing what, how, where, and who. It is clear, concise, and gets to the point right away. It also grabs the readers attention.

  7. Examples of leads • Source: Boston Globe (Associated Press) / via jourprosem.blogspot.com • Article: Mass. Rep. Polito again blocks $400M spending bill • URL:http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2010/09/28/mass_rep_polito_again_blocks_400m_spending_bill/ • Lead: BOSTON—Massachusetts Rep. KarynPolito has blocked plans by House Democratic lawmakers to pass a $400 million midyear spending bill for a second straight day. • Reason it's a good lead: This is a good lead because it is focused, uses effective verbs and quickly answers where, who, what, when. At the same time, the lead/lede is interesting enough where it captures the readers attention.

  8. Examples of leads • Source: UN News Centre / via jouroprosem.blogspot.com • Article: Ban stresses role of ‘Group of 77’ developing nations in advancing UN priorities • URL: http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=36245&Cr=mdg&Cr1= • Lead: 28 September 2010 – From achieving global anti-poverty targets to tackling climate change and other critical environmental issues, the bloc of developing nations known as the “Group of 77 and China” has a vital role to play in ensuring progress on a host of priorities on the United Nations agenda, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today. • Reason it's a bad lead: This is a bad lead/lede because it is too wordy with too many clauses. It goes off on mini tangents with its wordy clauses. It's confusing to the reader and can easily lose him or her. I had to read it twice to get the point, and I still wasn't sure I got it until I read the rest of the article.

  9. Examples of leads • Let’s check out NYTimes.com, Newsday.com and CNN.com for the top stories on their sites and the leads they use to report. …

  10. So what’s a nut graf? • A paragraph that summarizes in a nutshell the main point of the story. • In simple stories, the lead is the “nut graf” • In feature stories, the “nut graf” may follow the lead (when it’s anecdotal or takes time to explain) • Every news story has a “nut” near the beginning

  11. More lead tips • Avoid cliche and generic openings • Never bury the lead • Don’t place your reader in unlikely situations or assume anything for the purpose of creativity with news/facts • Try to never start a story with a quote as your lead

  12. Writing simply • Keep one idea to each sentence • Omit needless words • In order to – to • The fact that – that • At that point in time – at that time • A small number of – a few • In an attempt to – to • All of the all – all • Keep numbers to a minimum

  13. Covering speeches • Prepare • Interview the speaker before/after • Be an eyewitness • Remember the audience • Report the protests and reaction

  14. Writing about meetings • Find the central point in what generally is a dull experience • Don’t overwrite and give too much about everything that happened, just write to the main news story. This will be the most discussed and debated topic. • What may be dull to you could be and is probably VERY important to others: school boards, town boards, etc. • Get reaction after a meeting, don’t just quote what is said during meeting hours

  15. Ending a story • Good writers see an ending as vital to story’s structure • Endings leave final impressions for readers • There is more than one way to end a story

  16. Ending a story • Start over: Think back to the beginning. How did you start the story? • People: If you begin your story with a person, does it make sense to bring this person back into the story as your ending? • Location: Often you can return to the same location where you began. • Thematic: Revisit the same issue, even if the people or location have changed.

  17. Common story endings • Kicker quote – finish off with a quote • Future action – point to something happening next; meeting, game, event, date, trial, etc. • Full circle – relate to something in your lead and get back to the beginning

  18. How to write a news story in 15 steps! • 1. Select a newsworthy story/topic to write about • 2. Think about your goals and objectives in writing the story • 3. Find out who can provide accurate info • 4. Do your homework and research for info • 5. Prepare a list of questions to ask sources • 6. Arrange methods to get all necessary info

  19. How to write a news story in 15 steps! • 7. Interview sources and take notes • 8. Interview second and third sources, follow-ups, etc. • 9. Ask again, “what’s the story?” • 10. Make a written outline of story • 11. Write first draft • 12. Read through first draft, looking for content problems

  20. How to write a news story in 15 steps! • 13. Write and then read second draft out loud • 14. Copy edit your story, check it all! • 15. Deliver your finished story to editor before deadline

  21. Next Class • Beat Note No. 2 is due! • Lecture according to syllabus

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