Structure of a news story
A news story is organized differently from any other type of writing. For example, an essay
would begin with an introduction and then move on to the body and then end with a powerful
conclusion. But a news story quickly conveys the main facts of a happening – the climax –
and then relates the other facts in the order of diminishing importance.
Inverted pyramid
Newspapers also adopted the inverted-pyramid form because it summarises the news quickly.
It gives readers the convenience of grasping the news of the day by simply skimming lead
paragraphs. The form allows readers to decide whether they want to continue reading a story
or leave it after any one of its paragraphs. An inverted pyramid can also be trimmed from the
bottom, which makes it easier to fit it into the tight news holes of a newspaper.
The primary advantage of the inverted pyramid style is that it allows someone to stop reading
a story after only one or two paragraphs. Doing so still allows that person to learn the story’s
most important details. The inverted pyramid style also ensures that all the facts are
immediately understandable. It also helps the headline writer to grasp the essentials of the
story more quickly. Moreover, if a story is too long, editors can easily delete one or more
paragraphs from the end.
Hourglass style
Most stories are written in the traditional inverted pyramid. But there are alternatives to this
style. In hourglass style, the reporter provides the major news in the first few paragraphs of
the story. These paragraphs are presented in the inverted pyramid style. The reporter uses a
turn, a transitional paragraph is introduced to explain the chronology of the events. The
transitional paragraph may begin with: police gave the following account of the accident, our
correspondent gave the following account, the victim told the jury what happened etc. The
details presented are told in the chronological order. Hourglass style is suitable for covering
trials, accidents news, breaking news etc.
LEAD/INTRO
The first paragraph or two in a news story is called the lead. The lead is the most
important part of a story and the most difficult part to write. It is the part of the story that
attracts the reader and, if it is well-written can arouse readers’ interest. It should tell the
reader the point of the story, not hide the subject with unnecessary or misleading words and
phrases. The important types of leads are listed below.
1. Summary leads: A summary lead, generally in no more than 35 words, tells an audience
the most important of the six primary elements of an event, the five W’s and H. Reporters
look for these six elements whenever they cover a news event. The most important of the six
elements go into a summary lead.
2. Narrative lead: A narrative lead is the most popular lead on features and non-breaking
news stories. It draws people into a story by putting them, suddenly, in the middle of the
action. It should entice a person to continue reading.
3. Contrast leads: A contrast lead compares or contrasts one person or thing with another,
or several people or things with one another. These “old and new”, “short and tall” or
“yesterday and today” leads tell an audience the way something was and now is. They can be
used on any type of news or feature story.
4. Question leads: Lead that asks a question. The key to writing a question lead is to answer
the question as quickly as possible
EG: Sweating? The mercury is to go up sharply in the days to come.
5. Direct address lead: In a direct-address lead, the news or feature writer communicates
directly with the audience by using the word you in the lead. These leads give writers an
opportunity to reach out to their audience, to include them as individuals in a story.
Eg: Beware if you are above 40. One out five Indians suffer from serious respiratory
ailments, revealed a study conducted by....
6. Quote leads: A quote lead allows a central character to begin a news or feature story by
talking directly to the audience. The quotation may be the most powerful one in the story, or
it may set the tone for what is to follow.
Eg: ‘I will not resign’, declared the CM.
News Values
News values are general guidelines or criteria which determine how much prominence a
media outlet gives a news story. They explain why a story interests its audience; and how
editors and other journalists decide that one piece of information is news while another is not.
1. Impact/consequences : An event that causes or is capable of causing great sequence of
events affecting many persons is obviously newsworthy. Though all newsworthy events spell
consequences, the extent and the degree of consequences add to the news value. If many
people are affected, then the reporter knows that such an event is important enough for a
news story.
2. Conflict : Most conflicts are newsworthy to some degree. Wars, murders and violent
strikes receive space on the front page. Conflicts between political parties, between nations,
between man and nature arouse reader interest.
3. Disaster and tragedy : The terrorist attacks on the Indian Parliament, Taj hotel in
Mumbai, World Trade Centre in Washington; flood in Uttarakhand, Tsunami and the
nuclear radiation in Japan, a super-cyclone killing thousands, a volcano eruption that brings
in its wake death and destruction etc. are all newsworthy events.
4. Proximity : Proximity means nearness. An accident that takes place in
Thiruvananthapuram is more newsworthy in Kerala than an accident of the same magnitude
taking place in Bhubaneshwar.
5. Human interest : These are news stories which appeal to one’s feelings and emotions. A
business millionaire donates a kidney, a twelve-year old girl who ventures to cross the
English Channel, a ragging incident that leads a student to commit suicide etc. are examples
of human interest stories.
6. Novelty : Unusual events, actions or statements that make us stop and shake our heads in
wonder or puzzlement are certainly newsworthy. A two-headed calf, a cat that walked 200
km to find its owner, a mother gives birth to five babies in delivery etc. are definitely
newsworthy items.
7. Sex : This is of perennial interest to readers. Solar scandal involving Saritha Nair and
allegation of sexual abuse against former Kerala minister Jose Thettayil etc. have occupied
front page space in media.
8. Eminence and prominence: Names make news and bigger names make bigger news.
There is an aura of news around prominent personalities. The visits, statements and even the
silence of big names can make headlines.
9. Money: The budget (national, state, municipal) is news; so are levying fresh taxes, fall in
commodity prices, salary hikes and economic crises.
10. The power elite: Stories concerning powerful individuals, organization or institutions
will frequently appear in the media.
11. Celebrity values: Stories concerning people who are already famous. Disproportionate
attention given by the media on Sachin Tendulkar, the coverage of Abhishek- Aishwarya
marriage, the birth of baby Bachan are examples of celebrity news stories.
12. Miscellaneous values: The other news values include crime, religion, humour, weather,
food, inventions etc. The news values provide criteria for journalists to decide which stories
are newsworthy and which are not. These values enable journalists to decide which stories
are major ones and which are relatively insignificant.
The 5 Ws and 1 H of Journalism
5W + 1H : An Effective Approach to Collecting and Presenting Key Information One of the
most universally used tools for information gathering, analysis, organization and presentation
is the 5W1H framework. The questions a journalist answers in the lead of a conventional
newspaper article are who, what, when, where, why and how.
What
In journalism, the "what" identifies an event and is often stated in the "lead (or lede)," the
first paragraph of a news story. The "what" is the primary subject, the reason theinformation
is being gathered and presented. Apart from journalism, it may be stated ina title and in a
purpose statement. The "what" may need to be defined, a process thatmay comprise the
remainder of a document.
Example : What, specifically,...?
• Who
A news story identifies who an event involves. The "who" may be part of the lead, and could
be the reason the story is news worthy. In other contexts, the "who" identifies the persons or
groups the "what" concerns. It might describe the audience of a document, or those who are
affected by a policy, process or procedure.
Example : Who benefits?
• When
A key part of a news story is describing when an event happened. Answering the “when"
indicates any time sensitivity related to the "what." It may be part of an instruction regarding
the proper point at which a action should be taken. Sometimes it may be part of an "If...then"
scenario of conditional action.
Example : When will it start/end?
• Where
A news story reports the location at which an event took place. The "where" describes a
geographical or physical location of importance to the "what." At times, the where may be
less important than other factors.
Example : Where are you?
• Why
The "why" is usually the most neglected of the questions in the framework. News stories
often lack information from authoritative sources to explain the "why." In other contexts, the
"why" may be considered irrelevant, particularly when describing a policy or procedure
decreed by an organizational authority. Efforts to ascertain and explain the "why" may help
those affected be more accepting of any change the "what" requires.
Example : Why does that happen?
• How
For journalists, determining how an event took place may be nearly as challenging as
explaining the "why," although more effort is usually put to satisfying the question. When
describing policies, processes or procedures, the how may be the most important part of the
effort. A considerable appetite for understanding how to do something can be found across
audiences. Sometimes effort focuses on the "what" when more work should be devoted to
explaining the "how."
Example : How much?
Hard News Vs. Soft News
Hard news and soft news are considered the two major types of news stories available. Up-to-
the-minute news and events that require immediate reporting are considered hard while
features and news that is considered background information or human-interest are thought of
as soft news. Subject matter that is usually considered hard news includes: Politics, war,
economics, and crime. On the flip side, the arts, entertainment and lifestyle stories are soft
news in nature.
Soft and Hard News May Overlap
What defines hard news isn't always about the subject matter. Some might call a news story
hard news because it is heavily reported—even though it is a subject matter considered softer
(like entertainment). It is possible to see news features that may be considered both hard and
soft, such as a story about the business dealings and private life of a successful media mogul,
leaving some to wonder if it is a business or a lifestyle story. Or possibly a story on major
style or renovation trends affecting the sale and cost of homes in a booming housing market
which again, is a blend of lifestyle and business.
The major difference between hard and soft news is the tone in which the story is presented.
Hard news usually takes on a factual approach that explains what happened, who the main
people involved were and where and when everything happened and why.
Soft news stories can be presented in a variety of ways, but they usually try to entertain or
advise the reader in some way. Listicles, like "Top 10 Ways to Stretch After a Run to Ease
Lactic Acid," are considered soft news, as are more in-depth entertainment features, such as
the lives and scandals of famous politicians.
Soft Leads
It is important to note that even though some stories may be considered hard news in style,
they may use a soft lead-in to capture the reader's interest (and heart). In general, soft news
requires a different approach to lead writing and are often called delayed leads because they
start telling a story before getting to the main facts. Soft-news lead-ins tend to be narrative or
anecdotal in nature, where they tell a story instead of stating important facts.
Feature stories (soft stories that are a little longer and more reflective) often use soft lead-ins
and use more descriptive and colorful language before probing further. Such stories begin
with setting the tone and introducing the reader to the atmosphere surrounding the story,
before jumping into the who, what, when, where and whys. The story may then be finished
up with a conclusion such as those of more traditional structures of storytelling.
Soft News Stories
1. FEATURES
A feature can be defined as a story that stresses the human interest angle. A news story
usually stops after it has presented facts or ideas but a feature story goes further than that.
News is an objective and factual account of events where the reporter sticks to facts and tries
to answer the six basic questions (who, what, where, when, why and how) which make a
news story. The aim of a reporter is to give facts or information of interest to readers. In the
case of hijacking of a plane, the lead stories will focus on hard facts such as the number of
passengers, the destination of the plane, the response of the government, the motives of the
hijackers and the details of the crisis management. On the other hand, a feature writer can
concentrate on the experiences, feelings, narrow escapes of passengers, the anxiety of the
relatives of the passengers and crew. A feature could also be written on the laxity in
screening and checking passengers and security lapses.
Writing style of a feature
The style followed in news writing is in the descending order of importance (inverted
pyramid style). A feature follows an entirely different style. A feature writer has more
freedom and he/she can freely react to situations, events and people with emotions and
imagination Depending upon the content, features can be classified into the following
categories.
a. Profiles or Personality Features
Profiles describe interesting people. The people may have overcome a handicap, pursued an
unusual career, achieved success or become famous because of their colorful personalities.
b. Historical Features
Historical features commemorate the dates of important events, such as the bombing of
Hiroshima, assassination of Mahatma Gandhi, Tsunami tragedy and bombing of World
Trade Centre.
c. Adventure Features
Adventure features describe unusual and exciting experiences, perhaps the story of someone
who survived an airplane crash, climbed a dangerous mountain, sailed around the world,
served in the peace keeping force or fought in a war.
d. Seasonal Features
Feature writers are often assigned topics about seasons and holidays: about Independence
Day, teachers’ day, Onam, November 1 and the opening day of schools.
e. Explanatory Features
Explanatory features are also called interpretative features. In these features, the writers
provide a more detailed description or explanation of topics in the news
f. Unusual Occupation or Hobby Features
Reporters may write about an occupation because it is dangerous, highly specialized
(cleaning up oil spills) or exciting (personal fitness trainer or a make-up artist to a movie
star). They may also pick a boring or exacting job (sorting letters at a post office) that is
fulfilling to a physically challenged worker because it allows him or her to earn money and
live independently.
g. Personal Experience Features
News stories are usually written in the third person (he, she, it) with reporter being a neutral
observer or outsider. Features stories can be written in the first person (I, we) with the
journalist appearing in the story.
h. Human Interest Features
These deal with ordinary persons in extraordinary circumstances such as a construction
worker winning five crore Onam bumper lottery or extraordinary persons in ordinary
circumstances such the Chief Minister held up in traffic jam for three hours. They appeal to
the emotions of readers.
2. EDITORIAL
A good editorial is a carefully constructed analytical essay in which the writer explains,
interprets and appraises an event or public issue. An editorial provides an opportunity to a
newspaper to present its viewpoints on a policy, programme or event. It is not the chief
editor who writes the daily editorials in newspapers. He/she may do it on very important
occasions. Most newspapers have editorial writers who perform the task of writing editorials.
These writers should know the newspaper’s policies so as to ensure that the viewpoints
expressed in the editorials are not contradictory with such policies.
Types of editorials
The style of writing an editorial differs from newspaper to newspaper. Depending on the
topics and significance of the events, editorials can be classified into the following types. a)
Interpretative editorial:
This type of editorial enhances the reader’s knowledge and understanding of an issue. It
instructs and educates readers on a given topic, issue or event.
b) Action-oriented editorial:
This type of editorial may suggest one or more course of action in a very strong language
such as demanding the immediate roll back of the hike in petroleum products or withdrawal
of the steep increase in the University examination fee. It may demand immediate action on
the part of the public officials or exhort readers to take immediate action because of the
gravity of the issue.
c) Critical editorial:
The editorial writer will condemn a despicable act that has taken place. It could also be on
the involvement of individuals, organisations or political parties in the execution of such
nefarious acts.
d) Humorous editorial:
This type of editorial is intended to lighten the seriousness of the editorial page and inject an
element of amusement.
3. ARTICLE/COLUMN
An article is an elaborate piece of composition written on a topic. It is a welldocumented and
well-studied essay in which the writer expresses opinion on all aspects of a topic. Unlike
features, an article is serious and its primary role is to inform, educate and shape opinions.
An article is generally written in a sober style and the subject-matter is treated in a scholarly
manner. Articles usually appear on the editorial page of a newspaper. An article is an
elaborate piece of writing based on study and research. There will be facts, figures and lot of
statistics. The writer gives his/her views and conclusions after making a comprehensive
study of the subject. Interpretative journalism falls under this category. An interpretative
journalist may not go to the spot of the event but the analysis is based on his/her vast
knowledge. The terms article and column are used interchangeably in the media. A column
can appear regularly in a publication under a common name. A person who writes the column
is known as columnist.
4. INTERVIEW
An interview is a planned process of asking questions and seeking answers to gain more
information and understanding. A reporter will have to interview several people while
preparing news stories and features. Let us analyse the different types of interviews.
a. Interview for getting facts/ News interview
This type of interview is intended to give the reader expert comments and illuminations on a
subject from persons directly or indirectly connected with the news item.
b. Interview for getting opinions/Symposium interviews
A reporter gathers opinions from several persons to convey a general idea about a topic. The
interviewees need not be experts on the topic but ordinary citizens.
c. Personality interview
Personality interview is conducted to reveal the personality of an individual. The interviewer
selects a person who is either a news worthy personality or has become newsworthy because
of some awards or achievements. Most reporters begin with an informal talk to establish a
rapport with the interviewee. Then, the interviewer can move to a prepared set of questions.
General questions should be asked at the beginning and difficult questions should be posed
towards the end. The interviewer should listen carefully and verify the facts. Most interviews
are presented in the question and answer format. A brief biographical sketch is given at the
beginning and then the entire interview is reproduced or its excerpts. Another structure of the
interview is in the form of a speech story giving important facts and quotes.
5. MIDDLE
A write-up that generally appears at the center of the editorial page, below the article and
above the letters to the editor in a newspaper is known as middle. It is called so in
journalistic jargon because middle is positioned in between two different types of opinion
pieces on the same page. The middle is usually a humorous, entertaining piece of writing.
Mostly, it is a satire on unusual experiences or strange political developments. It may either
deal with an off-beat or a topical subject or attempt to expose or ridicule certain policy,
programme, activity etc. Middles are not mere fun and entertainment; they are also highly
thought-provoking.
6. REVIEW
A review is a critical assessment of an art form or entertainment. A review should provide
information, describe the work and express an opinion about it. A review is considered useful
by many people. A favourable review usually attract people to the work and the vice versa. In
the midst of so many art and entertainment, a critical assessment in the form of a review does
a vital service to the audience. Reviewers must write for their readers, not for the
authors/directors whose work they are assessing. To do this, they must know who their
readers are. Some magazines publish a brief review of a film or book and then give a five star
rating (*****excellent, ****good, ***average, **below average, *poor). Some newspapers
and magazine provide longer, more carefully argued reviews. A book review in The Hindu
and The Frontline, for example, might run to 1,000 words of description, argument and
opinion.
7. Human Interest Story
At the heart of any human-interest story is people. It is people sharing their unique stories in
an emotional and interesting way. Whether it be overcoming adversity, raising awareness,
opening up about a condition or experience to help educate others; tales of exceptional human
achievement, acts of bravery, unsung heroes, victims, funny stories – the focus is always on
the person and their experience.
To this end, the person should always be the central protagonist. She should take centre stage
in the telling of her own story, and so the way the story is written is very different from a
traditional news story.
The benefit of telling a story like this is so the reader can relate to it in an emotional way. A
good human interest story will spark anger, empathy, compassion, sympathy, motivation,
laughter, fear and love. Not in equal measure, but if a journalist can tick all these boxes in
some way, the story is bound to be a success and likely be shared and highly engaged with.
The fundamental objective is to move someone with a story.
Infotainment
A cross between entertainment and informational content is termed infotainment. This type of
human interest and social news receives a large amount of criticism when compared to
journalism. Much like soft news, it covers subjects that are not necessarily related to large
serious events. Infotainment focuses on celebrities, various movie reviews, concerts in the
area, and even sports. It helps boost publication ratings as it draws the attention of many
viewers or readers, bringing a lighter take on the news. Infotainment provides stories for its
consumers. It tries to search for the thrilling, special and surprising essence of an event and
makes an entertaining, exciting story out of it.
