WRITING AS A JOURNALIST

• If it is not exciting, important, or of note as information, no one will read it

• If no one reads it, you’re wasting your time• Remember that people read the news to

understand something that is important to them, now, today, or that they feel will be soon, or that they find of interest

• So … MAKE PEOPLE WANT TO READ !

What is Journalism For?

• You are telling the community its story• You are reporting accurately• You are providing a bit of background (Remember,

since the journalistic effort is cumulative, you do not have to go back to first principles all the time.)

• Your skills are ‘out there’ for all to see, so be careful

• On to the next slide

Journalism: What’s Involved?

• Getting background and setting it out in an article

• Finding or getting quotes

• Applying quotations to manipulation of subject

• Prognostication (divining possible futures within limiting parameters)

• On to the Writing!

Quotations

• Getting quotes means you have to talk to people and accurately record what they say

• Get their name and title correct

• Date and time your notes.

• Don’t be afraid to ask again if the question is dodged

• Back to the Top

• Using quotes reinforces a position or point of view

• Be sure to name the person and their position when quoting

• Vary sentence structure to emphasize quote

Backgrounding

• Backgrounding sets context for reported information.

• Background information may be referential or inferential

• Background information does not need to appear at the beginning of the article but may be scattered throughout your work

• New subjects to the public fray will need more backgrounding than current topics

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Referential Backgrounding

• Refers to another article or series in the same area of reporting (same paper, same series of reports, etc., as appropriate)

• You (author) refer directly to other reports (i.e., Over the past few days, the Mayor has said that … , or Continuing problems with traffic management on the High-Level bridge have forced …)

• To Inferential Backgrounding• Go back to a previous slide to find out about quote

s• Back to the Top

Getting Quotes

• Call person on phone and identify yourself• Explain what you are doing, and why• Ask for “X” minutes of time (be reasonable -- 2 or 3

minutes should be enough)• Many people answer the question they wish you had

asked, not what you really asked. If you don’t feel answered, ask the same question in another way

• How do you quote mistakes?• Back to the top

Applying Quotations to Subject Manipulation

• Use quotes to provide ‘proof’ in one direction or another for your article

• Multiple quotes may be used to illustrate confusion, or disagreement of the actors in a particular situation

• A long quotation may be paraphrased, then a short actual quote used to support it, underline part of the paraphrase or clinch in some way

• Back to Getting Quotes

• To Using Quotations

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Making Prognostications

• It is reasonable to say something like; “Due to confusion, it is clear that decisions are a long way off on this problem”, or “It is now up to the Chairperson to decide which view will prevail”.

• Do not make personal prognostications in journalism. The readers don’t care what you think … they want to know what the interviewee thinks … so make yourself disappear.

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Getting The Quote You Want• Many people will answer the question they wish you had asked, not what you really

asked. • For instance, if you ask “What do northern Ontarians feel about the proposed dump

site in the Adams Mine?”, the person may answer “What do you think is the best way to deal with Toronto’s garbage?” because they can’t answer your question, don’t want to, or have a vested interest in a certain point of view.

• Try again … ask it like this: “There have been several proposals about Toronto’s garbage problem. Dumping it into the Adams Mine is one proposed solution … what do you think of that, and what do opponents of this plan say?”

• If you ask the question twice and get no useful answer, you may be able to use that fact as part of your article, mentioning that “The Mayor would not directly answer questions about the reaction of Northern Ontarians to the proposal to dump Toronto’s trash in their back yard.” This may set you up for success in the future with the same person because they know they will be accurately quoted.

• Back to Getting Quotes

Inferential Backgrounding

• You (author) assume a shared amount of information which may be used as assumptions by both parties (writer and reader)

• “With winter coming, Toronto is sharpening its snow-plows and buying salt to prepare for the onslaught” infers knowledge about our winters and the role(s) of the City

• To Referential Backgrounding• Go back to a previous slide to find out about quote

s• Back to the Top

Using Quotations

• Quotations prove what your writing says, and substantiate contentious points

• Quoting inaccuracies can be useful• Example: you write “Toronto’s garbage problem has been

coming on for years”, and substantiate it with a quote from Mel Lastman, the Mayor, who told you that “Toronto has to look after a problem that has been years in the making, and simple solutions such as the Adams Mine are not going to be an eternal panacea for the citizens of this town.”

• Vary the order of quote usage within paragraphs• Back to the top

Quoting Mistakes By Others

• If someone makes an error, and you wish to quote it, be sure to add ‘sic’ after the error, in brackets

• “That was the most unkindest (sic) cut of all”, according to Julius Caesar, after Brutus skewered him in the Rotunda (a particularly tender body part)

• Back to Using Quotations

On To The Writing!

• Create a rough plan for the article, with places to insert quotes

• Begin by writing paragraphs, with double spaces between them, and double-spaced within

• Check that each paragraph cements a specific point directly related to the article OR moves the article along in some way

• To the next slide

Write The First Paragraph To Hit The Reader ...

• In the wallet, ego, memory OR create a perception of need of a thing to solve a problem

• The next few paragraphs may background the situation

• Then lay out where the situation is now• Introduce contention, if any• Prognosticate• On to next slide

Polish Your Writing

• Do all grammar/syntax/spelling corrections• ensure that the rules of quotations, backgrounding

and tight focus have been followed• Read it aloud … is there a variety of sentence

type? Does the word selection fit the mouth well?• Correct and do final print-out. • You’re done!

• The End• Back to the top

The End

Good luck with your work! I hope you found this slide show useful.