How to write a news report
An article is written lite a pyramid. I have illustrated it here with all the parts that are included. In this text below they have the color red.
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Planning
Plan your story – start off by choosing your subject from this webbsite.
Collect your sources. A source could be a website, a text in a book, a news report, a radio program or an interview with a person. You should become an expert on the subject and be able to answer all the questions. Make sure you save the sources you use in a list. Here is an explanation of how that is done:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schoolreport/19272270
If you want to have help with the words you can create a wordlist or have words translated by using this site: http://lingro.com/
What do I want to tell?
Before you start writing, ask yourself: what is the main point of this story? What do I need to tell? Here is an instruction:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_NmVtnEEA8
The parts of the article
You can use a template if you want to. You find the writing template here. I have numbered tha parts below that you find in the template above.
Make a lead (1), which makes out the first paragraph. The lead answers all the four questions:
- What is happening?
- Who is involved?
- Where is this happening?
- When is it happening?
The lead should only contain the answer to all of that and nothing else. Begin with what is most important.
Write the rest of the article and develop the information given in the lead. Split the text into 2-4 paragraphs. This part of the text is called the body.
Stick to the 3 C’s of news writing!
Clear – as if you were telling the story to one person; never use a long word where a short one will do just as well.
Concise – keep to the key facts and don’t bore your audience.
Correct – get facts, grammar and punctuation right and be honest about where your information is from.
Here in an instruction of the 3 C´s and also an instruction on how to write a script and make a clip.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schoolreport/27697544
A good way to get to right focus is to use the passive voice, which leaves out who did it, i e “no food can be found (by the inhabitants)”.
The second paragraph (2) contains the answers to how and why.
In the third paragraph (3) you should include a quotation from an interview. Since you´re not interviewing a person you have to make one up.
Add any other information that the reader might want to know in the fourth paragraph (4). What final thought do you want to leave the audience with?
Remember to write what is true and stay neutral. Let people think for themselves. You can use the template for writing an article.
A picture can illustrate and help us understand. You have to find one that can be used with the right CC. Underneath the picture you write a caption, which tells us what we see.
Title your work with figurative language. It should announce the topic, be catchy with a verb in present tense and short. Have a look here for figurative language examples.
Proofread
Ask a friend to read it and use the checklist before you show it to me. Checklist for news report.
If you want to you can write a tweet that summarizes the news under the #meningarmedelever. This is optional.
Good luck!
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