Writing a News Article

I kept six honest serving men,
They taught me all I knew,
Their names are WHAT and WHY and WHEN,
And HOW and WHERE and WHO.

Rudyard Kipling

A news article focuses on "hard" news; whereas, a feature article focuses more on news of human interest.

Distinctive Features

News articles are written in a format similar to an inverted pyramid, that is, a pyramid resting on its point rather than its base. The most important point in the article is the first point, and it forms the base of the triangle. Each point that follows supports the first point, but is of less importance. The reason for this is newspaper editors must often cut the length of stories to fit the space available in the paper. A story written in the form of an inverted pyramid allows the editor to cut the end of a story without losing the continuity of the story.

Points to Remember

• Use the reporter's formula: who, what, why, when, where, and how.
• Remember to include details in the order of importance.
• Try to anticipate and answer your reader's questions.
• Be objective in your reporting; do not let your own opinions overly influence the way you write.
• Be brief and factual.
• Keep your paragraphs short.

Writing Process

1. Gathering your facts

• List your facts briefly under the headings of the W-5: who, what, why, when, where and how.
• These facts will form the framework of your inverted pyramid.

2. Adding Details

• Decide which additional information to add.
• Choose details which add interest for the reader.
• What impact will the news have on the community?
• Does the impact need further explanation?
• What additional information will the reader need to understand the importance of the news?
• What makes your article newsworthy?
• Remember to omit judgement, opinion, and assumption.

3. Planning the Inverted Pyramid

• Arrange the details you have written above in the order of importance, especially order of importance for your readers.
• Order of importance may be different from order of interest.
• Put the most important information first so that if the editor cuts material from your story, it still contains the most important details.

Writing

First Draft

The following section shows the way you should draft your newspaper article.

• Paragraph A: makes the main point, that is, contains the news. Be sure you include the "Who?" and "What?"
• Paragraph B: is where you explain in more detail what your wrote in A. Include answers to questions "Where?", "When?", and "Why?" Be sure paragraph B is not more important than paragraph A.
• Paragraph C: contains more information, but on matters of less importance than paragraphs A and B.
• Paragraph D: has details that would not be missed, perhaps answering the question, "How?"
• Paragraph E: contains only points which, while interesting, do not add to the news value of the story.

Continue adding details until you have included all the information vital to your story. Do not ramble. Exclude unnecessary details and irrelevant information.

Revising

When you have finished the first draft, check for completeness. Ask these questions of your composition:

• Have I included who, what, why, when, where, and how?
• Have I included necessary explanations where necessary?
• Will the readers have questions I have not addressed? Can I anticipate their questions and reply?
• Next, check your writing techniques:
• Are my sentences short and simple?
• Have I used a clear, nontechnical vocabulary?
• Have I begun a new paragraph for each new idea, recognizing that a newspaper paragraph is very unlike an expository paragraph?
• Do I follow the inverted-pyramid organization? Or will the reader lose vital information if the editor cuts the end of the article?

Proofreading

Accuracy Check

• Are dates accurate?
• Are times accurate?
• Are places clearly identified?
• Are names included where necessary and people identified by position or title?

Finally, check:

• grammar
• mechanics
• usage
• spelling
• word choice

References:

Dick, Jill. Freelance Writing for Newspapers. 2nd ed. London: A & C Black, 1998.

Sorenson, Sharon. Webster's New World Student Writing Handbook. 3rd ed. New York: Macmillan, 1997.

Assignment:

1. Imagine you are a reporter with one of your hometown newspapers.
2. You are in charge of writing a current news story in English for foreigners living in your hometown.
3. Choose a current news story, gather your facts, and write the story.