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Aug 29, 2022 · Begin with the most important and timely information. Follow those facts with supporting details. Conclude with some less important—but relevant—details, interview quotes, and a summary. The first paragraph of a news article should begin with a topic sentence that concisely describes the main point of the story.
- Overview
- Planning Your Article
- Writing Your News Article
- Proofing Your Article
Writing a news article is different from writing other articles or informative pieces because news articles present information in a specific way. It's important to be able to convey all the relevant information in a limited word count and give the facts to your target audience concisely. Knowing how to write a news article can help a career in
, develop your writing skills and help you convey information clearly and concisely.
Outline your article with all the facts and interview quotes you’ve gathered. Decide what your point of view on the topic is before you start writing.
Your first sentence is the most important one—craft an attention-getter that clearly states the most important information.
To begin writing a news article, you need to
you will be writing about extensively. In order to have a credible, well written, well-structured article, you have to know the topic well.
If you’ve ever written a
you understand the work that goes into learning about your topic. The first phase of writing a news article or editorial is pretty similar.
Begin by asking yourself the “5 W’s” (sometimes “6 W’s”).
Who - who was involved?
Begin with a strong leading
News articles begin with a leading sentence that is meant to grab a reader's attention and interest them. This is one of the most important parts of the piece, so start with the good stuff when writing a news article. Remember the inverted triangle.
Your lead should be one sentence and should simply, but completely, state the topic of the article.
Remember when you had to write essays for school? Your lead is like your thesis statement.
Let your readers know what your news article is about, why it’s important, and what the rest of the article will contain.
Give all the important details.
Whether you’re writing a news article professionally or for a school assignment, your article isn’t complete until you’ve checked all your facts. Having incorrect facts will immediately discredit your article and could hinder you as a writer.
Be sure to double check all the facts in your news article before you submit it, including names, dates, and contact information or addresses. Writing accurately is one of the best ways to establish yourself as a competent news article writer.
Ensure you have followed your outline and have been consistent with style.
There are several styles of news articles and journalism from objective reporting to Gonzo (A style of journalism where the reporter describes the events in a subjective manner, usually through a first person narrative).
- Grace Fleming
- Headline or title. The headline of your article should be catchy and to the point. You should punctuate your title using Associated Press style guidelines unless your publication specifies something else.
- Byline. The byline is the name of the writer—your name, in this case.
- Lead (sometimes written "lede") The lead is the first sentence or paragraph, written to provide a preview of the entire article. It summarizes the story and includes many of the basic facts.
- The story. Once you’ve set the stage with a good lead, follow up with a well-written story that contains facts from your research and quotes from people you’ve interviewed.
Good news writing begins with good, accurate reporting. Journalists perform a public service for citizens by presenting truthful facts in honest, straight-forward articles. News Values. Journalists commonly use six values to determine how newsworthy a story or elements of a story are. Knowing the news values can help a journalist make many ...
- Understand the News Writing Structure. News writing follows a specific structure known as the inverted pyramid. This means that the most important information is presented at the beginning of the article, followed by supporting details in descending order of importance.
- Grab the Reader’s Attention with a Strong Headline. A captivating headline is essential to grab the reader’s attention and entice them to click and read the full article.
- Write a Compelling Lead. The lead, also known as the lede, is the opening paragraph of a news article. It should summarize the most important aspects of the story and entice the reader to continue reading.
- Stick to the Facts. News writing is based on facts, not opinions. It is crucial to present accurate information and verify your sources. Double-check names, dates, and statistics to ensure the credibility of your article.
Apr 18, 2024 · 2. Open the article with a “lead” first sentence. The lead, also spelled "lede,” contains the story's most essential details. The lead should briefly answer, “Who,” “What,” “When,” “Where,” “Why,” and “How” for the reader. It should also hook the reader in and encourage them to keep reading.
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May 19, 2024 · The article begins with the lede and presents information in order of descending importance. The most important information comes first, followed by less important details. The Hourglass - builds on the inverted pyramid and combines a narrative. It delivers breaking news and tells a story. The first 4-6 paragraphs contain a summary lede and ...
