Print News Writing, Test 1, Noah Darnell, Harding University
Most sports stories are about the ____ not the game.
Players
Bias
Prejudice in favor of or against one thing, person, or group compared with another, usually in a way considered to be unfair.
Hard News
Serious events vital to fulfill the mandate of journalism
What types of stories should abide by the classical news values?
Sports Stories
Headlines should reflect the ____.
Story
What are the five structures of a sentence?
Subject, Predicate,Indirect object, Verb, Direct Object
Predicate
The action that is done by the subject
Score stories contain almost no newsworthiness except when...
The game itself was somehow significant.
Subject
The subjects the doe of the action
What is the caution against the six news values?
They sometimes get a bad reputation.
Participles
a word formed from a verb (e.g., going, gone, being, been ) and used as an adjective (e.g., working woman, burned toast )
verb
a word to identify an action or state of being
articles
a, an, the (adjectives)
COnjunctions
Connects words and phrases; always followed by a comma Remember FANBOYS: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so
Conflict of interest within a story can damage your ______.
Credibility and the credibility of the publication.
What is the honorable mention News Value?
Currency
Direct Object
DO is the thing being ACTED UPON BY THE SUBJECT
The best leads do not contain what?
Dependent Clauses
what makes reporting good?
Ethics ,accuracy, thoroughness, salaciocity
interjection
Expresses emotion or exclamation.
Every statement made in a news article should be a defendable _____.
Fact
T/F there are no rules to headline construction.
False
Soft news
Human- interest stories or features that inform and entertain.
indirect Object
IO is the recipient of the Direct Object
what keeps the reader wanting to know more?
"Hook"
The best leads only use proper names when.....
"Prominent" element is part of the newsworthiness
What is included with accuracy?
- Names - Titles - Record & Transcribe - Numbers cited - "How did you come by the information?" - Triangulate and verify - stay organized - if contradictory, then ask how the source was wrong exactly.
Wha are the 9 elements of journalisim?
1. Tell the truth 2. be loyal to citizens 3. possess a discipline of verification 4. be independent from those they cover 5. be an independent monitor of power 6. provide a forum for public criticism and compromise. 7. make the significant interesting and relevant 8. keep the news in proportion and make it comprehensive 9. have an obligation to a personal conscience.
how long are the best leads?
25-35 words long
How do you know if a story is true?
3 facts and 2 sources for each fact.
Nouns
A person, place, thing, or idea
adjective
A word that describes a noun
adverb
A word that describes a verb
pronouns
A word that takes the place of a noun
what are the characteristics of Media Writing?
Accuracy, Clarity, Efficiency, Precision of Facts, Precision of Languages.
what are two different types of verbs we learned about?
Active verb and Passive verd
Verb
An action word
Thievery Bias
Assumption: Because someone is rich, they are doing something underhanded or illegal. Press Failure: Companies and rich individuals are scrutinized in a way that other arent.
Access Bias (aka. Buddy Bias)
Assumption: Exclusive sources are always to only way to get the best stories. Press Failure: Dont offend exclusive sources in order to maintain the exclusive sources.
Narrative Bias
Assumption: Information is difficult to accurately communicate without an"emotional connection" Press Failure: Stories with no emotional component or narrative are "Less Important"
Crusader Bias
Assumption: We must always go on the crusade against social ills. Press Failure: A crusading journalist risks losing perspective
production bias
Assumption: Certain stories are automatically covered because they are easy Press Failure: Trivial matters are covered, deep digging isn't done, the same people are quoted.
Bad News Bias
Assumption: People care more about things that directly threaten them, their money, their safety. Bad News! Press Failure: Intentionally not ruining a story or burying it because of public exhaustion of "bad news"?
Status Quo Bias
Assumption: People prefer the status quo rather than radical change. Change should come slowly. Press Failure: Ignore any voice that is too radical because it seems "Biased" to allow those voices and not the voice that is advocation conservative thought.
Fairness Bias
Assumption: There should be equal coverage, equal voice to both side, even when one side is obviously wrong. Press Failure: Voice is given to stupidity. Voice is given to both sides no matter what to avoid charges of "bias"
be able to describe Commercial Bias
Assumption: People don't care about something unless it's new and unusual Press Failure: to follow up with more detailed information, the assumption is that the public's attention span is always short.
what is the problem of objectivity?
Is it possible, and how far should we go to achieve it? who can be trusted?
preposition
Locators of place and time
Hey Guys! I got all of my material form the study guide and the prezis, but please look over the prezis for yourself. I only hit the main points of them. I didn't go into the details.
Love, Holland
What are the two types of Appositives
Nonessential and Essential
What are somethings that are not newsworthy?
Offensive Details, Sensationalism (Yellow Journalism), Rumors, Sexual Assault, Details of Juveniles, Trade Names.
If a statement is not defendable as a fact, then it should be defendable as the ....
Opinion of the one person - Never the news writer - and be clearly identifiable as opinion.
What makes writing good?
Pace, Originality, Accessibility, Salience
The best leads have a _____________ element near the middle.
Time/Date
what are the 6 classic news values (Newsworthiness)
Timeliness, Impact/Magnitude, Prominence, Proximity, Unusual/Oddities, Conflict/Controversy
Depending on the locality of the story, they should be _____ and ______ is usually assumed.
Timely; Prominence
List the inverted pyramid parts (Top to Bottom)
Top - Who? What? Where? When? - Expanding information & Why? How? - additional facts, context, supporting Information, Quotes - Background, Alternative Explanations - accessory information, least important to story
T/F The Sentence is the simplest unit which can express a complete thought.
True
T/F You should never, except for very few exceptions, write in a first-person pronoun or a second person pronoun in a news story.
True
T/F a story that is a small part of a larger topic/trend still may be newsworthy exclusively for its similarity to other stories.
True
T/F if it feels like an ethical problem, it is likely an ethical problem.
True
T/F men and women should be treated equally in a story?
True
What is the run when writing about the words: Challenged, Disabled, and religion references.
Use the word handicapped instead of challenged and disabled ONLY when relevant. Only use religion references when relevant to the story.
When do you mention race?
When its absolutely necessary.
When someone presents an opinion, how do you separate it from fact?
When someone says, "I Believe..."
what does writing in an active voice attribute to?
action to a definite subject
The best leads are written in what type of voice?
active
Newsworthiness
an interesting character who faces a challenge or is caught up in a conflict, and whose situation changes as an action takes place in an engaging environment. 1. Character 2. Setting 3. Plot
If you want a story to go a certain way and find yourself ....
arguing a point rater then presenting facts. Check your self before you wreck yourself.
Ageism
avoid age-based stereotypes
relative pronoun
linked group of words preceding noun or pronoun; examples: who, which, that
Visual Bias
news with a visual hook is more likely to be noticed Assumption: People don't notice news unless it comes with pictures or video. Press Failure: Stories that have no visual component tend to be "Less important" than stories with images/video.
demonstrative pronoun
points out a person, place, thing, or idea ex: this, that, these, those
interrogative pronoun
pronoun that asks a question; examples: who, whom, whose, what, which
reflexive pronoun
refers to a noun or another pronoun and indicates that the same person or thing is involved ex: Myself, itself, himself, yourself, yourselves, themselves, ourselves.
what is the purpose of writing?
to inform, to entertain, and to persuade
the best leads are specific and do not contain
vagaries
Gerunds
words formed with verbs but act as nouns ex: [Swimming] in the ocean has been...