Term
What is the job of a journalist with respect to background information? |
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Definition
| Their job to decide where to draw the line between personal information and pertinent information |
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Term
Once a journalist has all the necessary information, what do they need to do with respect to the article? |
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Definition
| Write an interesting story that people will want to read |
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Term
What is the first thing a journalist must think about when writing an article? |
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Definition
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Term
Why is a lead so important? |
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Definition
| Many people reading the newspaper will just skim over the articles to find one that interests them so the lead needs to catch their attention and sound exciting |
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Term
After you write the lead what is the next step? |
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Definition
| Write the article in a well-thought-out way |
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Term
What is the goal of writing an article in a well-thought-out fashion? |
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Definition
| Want readers to understand the issue you are writing about, be interested in the facts you write about, and come away feeling more informed (like they learned something) |
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Term
How is writing a well-thought-out article achieved? |
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Definition
| Need to know what you want to say and do it in an orderly fashion: intertwine background information with quotes you took |
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Term
If you write an article in a well thought out way and intertwine background information with quotes effectively what is the result? |
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Definition
| Answer public's questions but in a thought-provoking, interesting way |
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Term
What is the role of background information in an article? |
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Definition
| Helps you to visualize the characters and create flow |
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Term
Why is how much background information you include in an article a balancing act? |
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Definition
The background must be simple enough that it doesn't distract from the story because you don't want readers to have a hard time understanding the story
-don't want people and issues to get lost in the background information
It must be detailed enough to give heart and soul to the people or issues in the story
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Term
What is the easiest way for a reporter to decide what background information is absolutely necessary? |
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Definition
| Make sure you can at least answer the 5 W and 1 H questions |
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Term
Once you can answer the 5 W's and 1 H what should you do? |
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Definition
| Gather the necessary details to back up your ideas and you're ready to write |
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Term
What questions should you ask yourself when deciding how much background information to include? |
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Definition
How much does the public really need to know?
What do they not need to know?
Will you be invading anyone's privacy by printing certain information? |
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Term
What is the role of a lead sentence? |
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Definition
| Leads the public into the article: people will read your lead and decide whether or not they are interested in continuing to read your article |
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Term
What are the three characteristics of a good lead sentence? |
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Definition
1) Contains an interesting summary of your entire article
2) Uses the least amount of words to get your ideas across (usually not more than 35 words)
3) Captures the interest of the audience right from the beginning |
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Term
What does the inverted pyramid look like? |
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Definition
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Term
What does the inverted pyramid tell us? |
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Definition
| Helps you visualize how you should set up your article and lead sentence: important facts first, then added details in the middle, down to the least important information |
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Term
What are the different approaches to a lead sentence? |
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Definition
| Can surprised people, describe the event, or quote someone etc. |
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Term
What test can you give yourself to see how well you have done in summarizing your article in your lead sentence? |
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Definition
Ask yourself how many of the 5 W's and 1 H can you answer just from your lead sentence?
Ask yourself what is the first thing the public is going to ask about this story? Make sure you include it
Get someone else to read your lead and see if it interests them |
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Term
How many of the 5 W's and 1 H are usually included in a lead sentence? |
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Definition
| Usually include at least the who, what, and when, but may include all of the 5 W's and the 1H |
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Term
What should you keep in mind when you are going about writing an article and collecting background information? |
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Definition
Need to know the impact on the people involved
What angle should you use?
Is there anyone to interview?
What does the public want to know?
What does the public already know?
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Term
What should you make sure to do when gathering background information? |
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Definition
| Take good notes as you analyze your questions and gather background information bcause you will not remember everything and good notes are essential to a good article and a good reporter |
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Term
What must a journalist always be aware of? |
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Definition
| His or her deadlines because deadlines are a huge part of a journalist's life and a responsible journalist never misses a deadline |
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Term
When you are organizing your article what do you need to decide? |
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Definition
| What the most important issues are to the story and what are the least important details |
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Term
How can you decide what are the most important issues and least important details when organizing your article? |
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Definition
Set up a graphic organized with the main focus of your article surrounded by your 5 W and 1 H questions, like this:
[image] |
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Term
What are the steps to organizing and writing an article? |
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Definition
1) Get all needed background information
2) Use a graphic organizer to organize your main focus of the article surrounding by 5 W and 1 H questions
3) Look at your diagram and decide what your most important information and least important details are
3) Use your notes to compose an exciting lead sentence that outlines and summarizes your article in less than 35 words
4) Do a quick write to make sure your article is going where you want it to go
5) Revise and make sure you have a brilliant lead sentence and headline |
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Term
What should you do if you are having a hard time coming up with a good lead sentence? |
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Definition
Don't spend too much time worrying over the lead sentence: you can write a working lead sentence that you can change as you go along
-Do a quick write to make sure your article is going where you thought it was headed and then add a good lead and headline when you revise
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Term
How does setting up a graphic organizer help you write your article? |
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Definition
| Your article can follow the details from most important to least important because it's all laid out in front of you already and all you have to do is include it in the article |
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Term
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Definition
| Usually you will do a lot of revising to perfect your article and won't use your first draft if you want a tight, informational article |
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Term
What is the purpose of revising? |
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Definition
Gives you the chance to fine-tune everything and make sure you are focused and organized: get rid of anything you don't need in the article
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Term
What should you keep in mind when revising your article? |
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Definition
| The job of a journalist is to give information to the public and help them interpret the news and how it will affect them personally: you want your article to focus on the issues and add to what the public already knows |
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Term
What is the checklist you should go through when revising? |
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Definition
Have you explained what the impact is on your readers?
Have you taken the most important angle?
Make sure there are no spelling mistakes or grammatical errors
Do you feel proud to attach your name to the article? Is it clean, focused, and objective |
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Term
What is the last step to writing/ revising an article? |
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Definition
| Include a headline and byline |
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Term
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Definition
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Term
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Definition
| line under the title that gives the author credit for the article, byline tells who the article is "by" |
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Term
What should a good headline be? |
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Definition
Short and catchy, should introduce your article in an appealing and positive way
Should be able to know what the article is about just by reading the headline |
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Term
What should you make sure not to do when coming up with a headline? |
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Definition
| Should not be so creative that the public doesn't know what your article is about after reading the headline |
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Term
What should you make sure to do regarding the byline? |
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Definition
| Never forget to put your name under the headline and spell it correctly or someone else will get credit for your work |
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Term
Let's Check Your Mastery
All lead sentences must be thirty-five words.
(a) true
(b) false |
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Definition
(b) false
Lead sentences shouldn't go over thirty-five words, but they don't have to be exactly thirty-five words. |
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Term
Let's Check Your Mastery
You should never include all the background information you collect.
(a) true
(b) false |
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Definition
(a) true
It is important to research and get all the background information you can, but you would never be able to put it all in one article.Too much information will bury your story and lose your readers. |
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Term
Let's Check Your Mastery
Usually a lead will include who, what, and when, but may include all 5 W's and one H.
(a) true
(b) false |
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Definition
(a) true
Leads usually include who, what and when as most important, but may include all 5 W's and one H. |
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Term
Let's Check Your Mastery
The important information doesn't have to come at the beginning of the lead as long as the lead is interesting.
(a) true
(b) false
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Definition
(b) false
The important information should always come at the first no matter how interesting your lead is. |
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Term
Let's Check Your Mastery
Headlines should be short, catchy, and about the article.
(a) true
(b) false |
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Definition
(a) true
Your headline should also lead the reader into your article in a short and catchy way. |
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Term
Let's Check Your Mastery
People should be able to know if they want to read my article just by reading my lead sentence.
(a) true
(b) false |
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Definition
(a) true
If you have created a well-written lead, people will know from your lead summary whether they want to continue reading your article or not. |
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Term
Let's Check Your Mastery
I should write and rewite my lead sentence until it is perfect before I go on to write the article.
(a) true
(b) false |
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Definition
(b) false
If your lead sentence doesn't come to you right away, make a working lead sentence that you can revise as the article goes along. |
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Term
Let's Check Your Mastery
I shouldn't have to worry about revising if I am really careful the first time I write the article.
(a) true
(b) false |
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Definition
(b) false
You will always have to revise, because no one is perfect, and no matter how careful you are, you will have to revise before you take your article to the press. |
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Term
Let's Check Your Mastery
I probably have enough background information if I can answer the five W's and one H.
(a) true
(b) false
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Definition
(b) false
You will probably have the bare bones of background information with the five W's and one H, but there is more you could get with interviews and research. |
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Term
Let's Check Your Mastery
I should take good notes right from the beginning because I will never be able to remember everything about the research I have done.
(a) true
(b) false |
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Definition
(a) true
Good notes are a journalist's best friend. You will be able to quote people because you wrote their quotes down exactly, and you will be able to organize your article by looking at the issues you came across in your research notes. Good notes are crucial to a good article. |
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