BBC Radio News has posted a very helpful guide online to writing for radio. It’s concise, clearly written and covers things such as getting the tone of story right and using only spoken English. The guide also includes a link to a detailed list of alphabetical rules about such things as the overuse of the word “but” and the…
A long-time reporter, editor and writing coach, Steve Buttry, has some great advice for reporters on everything from writing short to writing with emotional authenticity. Buttry is now director of tailored programs at the American Press Institute and his columns can be found at the API website.
Journalism students rely heavily on the internet for research, but are not always good judges of what’s credible and what’s just plain wrong. This guide by John R. Henderson, a reference librarian at Ithaca College in New York, provides a clear set of guidelines for evaluating websites. He also offers some fascinating examples that should help students…
Instead of the usual tips for writing a great lead or landing a great interview, a British journalism professor has come up with rules for how to be journalism students. He tells his students, for example, to learn to use the phone, rather than depend on e-mail. He encourages them to develop interests in things other than music.…
This YouTube video prepared by Mark Popesel, who teaches Television News Writing at the University of Arizona, compares two versions of the same television report – one with natural sound, the other without it. It’s a good example for television instructors to use to demonstrate how natural sound makes stories come alive.
Radio reporters, even experienced ones, always want to improve their on-air presentation. Now they are joined by print reporters who are increasingly expected to do audio reports for the web. In this Q&A Ann Utterback, a well known voice coach who works with journalists and the author of one of the best books on the subject, the Broadcast Voice Handbook offers…
If you struggle to explain to students when it is appropriate to use “says” vs. “said” in their stories, you may find some guidance from these editors and writers. In this piece, the Poynter Institute’s Chip Scanlan, explains why feature writers generally prefer the present tense, while some editors detest it. He makes his case, then follows up with the…
This is an example of a compelling 400-word profile, followed by notes from the reporter about the process he went through to keep it so short. The post is from the blog Newsthinking, by Bob Baker, a professional writing coach and journalist with the Los Angeles Times, whose site is an archive of successful stories, followed…
It’s a challenging course for graduate students at UC Berkley’s School of Journalism about the new practices that are redefining journalism. Students are told they will learn about major new trends in online journalism; become fluent in a variety of digital media forms, creating blogs, as well as database-driven news “mashups; and work on a collaborative online news site.…
The American Society of Newspaper Editors asked high school journalism instructors from around the country to prepare lesson plans for a variety of topics suitable for journalism classes — from news writing and editing to journalistic ethics and bias. The lessons are clearly designed for classes of American teens, but some of the ideas and classroom activities…