Readers understand the basics. News (5W/H) Background, Context Readers care about it. –Impact –Human Dimension Strongest leads play here Gannett initiative

Readers understand the basics. News (5W/H) Background, Context Readers care about it. Impact Human Dimension Strongest leads play here Gannett initiative requires that news stories have all four elements in the first five paragraphs. The All-Important Lead

My favs For the first time in Washington High School history, students complained about not having gas in the cafeteria. Done as a rewrite for another reporter YUMA, Ariz. (AP) Walk a couple hours and youll reach a highway, the smugglers said. Well be back with water. Members of the group, all of them from Mexico, apparently had no idea they would have to cross more than 50 miles of desert to reach the nearest road. And they lacked the water and know-how to survive the 115-degree heat. On Thursday, five days after the men and teenage boys set out to enter the U.S. illegally through southwestern Arizona, 14 of them were dead from exposure. It was the deadliest attempt to cross the border in Arizona history.

The All-Important Lead Leads must (true or false): Sum up the story in one paragraph. Always contain attribution. Run no longer than 30 words. The Truth: There are no hard-and-fast rules on how a lead should be structured, though you are wise to follow general guidelines.

The All-Important Lead KIEV, Ukraine (AP) _ A Russian passenger jet carrying at least 170 people, including 45 children, crashed Tuesday in eastern Ukraine after sending a distress signal, killing all aboard, authorities said. 27 words

The All-Important Lead NEW YORK (AP) _ Thats what some people worry will happen when a pen with erasable ink hits stores Friday. 0 words

Concise Write as if each word costs you $20 In general, 25 words or less works best After 25 words, $100 per word Clear Short words, sentences, active voice, strong verbs Rewrite, rewrite, rewrite. Decipher bureaucratic language, stats and vagueness Colorful APs tip: What is different about this story? The All-Important Lead

Direct / Hard News (Tell me the news.) Summary Analysis Delayed (Tell me a story.) Anecdotal ( Narrative Lead) Left-Hook Lead ( Contrast Lead) Staccato Lead Direct Address Question Quote The All-Important Lead

Direct / Hard News (Tell me the news.) Summary Analysis Delayed (Tell me a story.) Anecdotal ( Narrative Lead) Other Delayed Leads: Contrast Lead (Left-Hook Lead) Staccato Lead Direct Address Question Quote The All-Important Lead

Summary Lead MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) A woman who spent nearly 60 years of her life in an iron lung after being diagnosed with polio as a child died Wednesday after a power failure shut down the machine that kept her breathing, her family said. Advantages of Summary Lead Gets news out there right away. Feeds into inverted pyramid structure. Helps speed writing - Most breaking news stories have summary leads. Disadvantages of Summary Lead Usually doesnt have much of a shelf life. Not much flexibility to illustrate impact through people.

Anecdotal Lead PHOENIX _ A federal jury on Wednesday convicted Gov. Fife Symington of lying to lenders to get millions of dollars for his failing real estate ventures, making him the state's second governor to be ousted in less than a decade. (Los Angeles Times) PHOENIX (AP) _ Fife Symington's lip trembled and his voice cracked. After years of vowing to beat whatever federal prosecutors threw at him, he had lost, he was to be ousted as governor and he was almost certainly going to prison. "Every once in a great while, there is salvation in surrender," a tearful Symington said as he announced his resignation, which will take effect Friday. "I have never been one to linger and I don't intend to start now." The two-term Republican was convicted Wednesday of lying to get millions in loans to shore up his collapsing real estate empire in the 1980s, becoming the second Arizona governor in a decade to be forced from office by scandal.

Anecdotal Lead Advantages of Anecdotal Lead Good way to illustrate impact. Can engage reader emotionally. Disadvantages of Anecdotal Lead Difficult to write and report. - Anecdote has to clearly illustrate point of story. Takes real estate to get to the point. Natural tendency to over-write these.

Left-Hook / Contrast Lead Less than 3 years ago, two college friends decided to build a website to exchange their favorite videos. Today YouTube is owned by Google and gets over 25 million unique visitors to the site each month. Last summer, students aged 7-13 spent an average of seven hours a week playing video games in shopping arcades or on home computers. But this fall, those same students may spend twice that much time playing video games that teach English and Physics.

Left-Hook / Contrast Lead Advantages of Left Hook / Contrast Lead Engages reader powerfully. A good way to illustrate impact through people. Disadvantages of Left Hook / Contrast Lead Its difficult to do right. - When done poorly, simply confuses reader. Usually makes even more real estate to get to the point.

Staccato Lead Cotton candy. Corn dogs. Deep-fried Twinkies. Gut-twisting rides. The Arizona State Fair promises fun for all ages, but it can tough on a childs tummy if parents dont watch out. Advantages of Staccato Lead Short bursts create engaging mental images. Poor-mans anecdotal lead; not as difficult. Doesnt take as long to write. - Some breaking news stories use staccato leads. Disadvantages of Staccato Lead Only as good as material in your notebook. - Garbage in, garbage out. Can lead to embarrassing non-sequiturs.

Direct-Address Lead The (Newark, N.J.) Star-Ledger In answer to your question: No, venomous snakes are not allowed on airplanes. Everything else from lemurs to lizards to lion cubs may be traveling in the belly of your next flight. What, you thought they drove? Advantages of Direct-Address Lead Informal tone can engage reader. Work on light topics, news you can use (health, finance) Doesnt take as long to write. Disadvantages of Direct-Address Lead Can come across as flip, especially topics and tragedies. - You wont want to drive Interstate 10 today. Somebody died. It gets annoying if you do it too often.

Question Lead Have you ever wondered how you would survive if you found yourself alone in the wilderness? How would you defend yourself against predators? What would you eat? Where would you find water? Have you ever wondered why the last dentist never recommends Trident? Advantages of Question Lead Can work if it offers quick points and cadence. Disadvantages of Question Lead They work very, very, very rarely. Usually offers a junior journalist tone. Often a sign that writer doesnt understand point. - Should the city allow a new bridge? That was the question before the city council last night. People read newspapers to get answers, not to be asked questions. Sounds like a commercial

Quote Lead Cronkite News Service PRESCOTT Fire everywhere! Phillip Mando Maldonado, a squad leader, shouts instructions as a dozen hotshots, firefighters trained to combat wildfires in extreme conditions, face a nightmare scenario: flames rushing in from all sides and their survival hinging on successfully unfolding and wrapping themselves in thin sheets of heat-reflecting material. Get down! Heads toward center! Maldonado yells, the urgency in his voice rising. Diving to the ground, crew members attempt to form a tight circle and point their feet toward the approaching flames. That will deflect heat and help protect their torsos. They clamp down on the edges of their emergency shelters to make sure fire, smoke and heat cant get inside, and they keep their faces near the ground to breathe cooler air that wont damage their lungs. Theres nothing to do now but wait.

Quote Lead Advantages of Quote Lead Can work if dialog sets sense of person or moment. Disadvantages of Quote Lead Works very, very, very, very rarely. Usually offers a junior journalist tone. Almost always is vague and should be replaced.

FREMONT_ Principal Rod Belnap discussed the budget deficit with Town Council members Monday night at the councils regular monthly meeting. Belnap agreed to meeting after council members raised concerns about the size of program cuts and layoffs he has recommended. But Belnap came with even more unpleasant news: The deficit is $50 thousand _ twice as big as he had thought. In response, he proposed doubling layoffs to 200 and cutting Fremonts bus service. BURIED LEAD Problem Leads

CLUTTER LEAD WASHINGTON (AP) _ The Federal Trade Commission agreed Friday to allow the nations biggest leveraged buyout to go through, provided the two corporations involved _ which together account for one-eighth of the food sold in the nations supermarkets _ reduce their share of markets for ketchup, Asian foods and packaged nuts.

FREMONT_ When it rains, it pours. Fremont faces a perfect storm of dwindling sports revenues, forcing it to lay off 20 employees _ twice as many as originally predicted, Principal Rod Belnap said Monday. FREMONT_ A $20 thousand budget deficit has Principal Rod Belnap on the warpath when it comes to spending. CLICHE LEAD Problem Leads

FREMONT_ Doubling layoffs and cutting the schools bus service are what Principal Rod Belnap proposes doing in response to a $20 thousand budget deficit. SCOTTSBORO, Ala. _ Plans are being made for special entertainment at the next First Monday Trade Days slated on the First Monday weekend in September. PASSIVE LEAD Problem Leads

FREMONT_ Anything that is too wolf-y. TOO-CUTE-FOR-ITS-OWN-GOOD LEAD Problem Leads

Sunset Point Rest Area opened in 1967 at a cost of $50,000. It will reopen Tuesday after 18 months of renovation. BACKGROUND LEAD Problem Leads

Strong Leads The (Newark) Star-Ledger, 2006 A state appeals court has ruled that Marty Richards, a Broadway and movie producer, is eligible for a share of a $350 million family trust built on Band-Aids and baby powder, but the long-running inheritance dispute may not be over. The appeals court ruled last week that Richards, who produced the Oscar-winning movie "Chicago," qualifies as a "spouse" who can collect part of a charitable trust established in 1961 by J. Seward Johnson Sr.

Strong Leads The Washington Post, 2003 BAGHDAD _ On a cold, concrete slab, a mosque caretaker washed the body of 14-year-old Arkan Daif for the last time. With a cotton swab dipped in water, he ran his hand across Daif's olive corpse, dead for three hours but still glowing with life. He blotted the rose-red shrapnel wounds on the soft skin of Daif's right arm and right ankle with the poise of practice. Then he scrubbed his face scabbed with blood, left by a cavity torn in the back of Daif's skull. The men in the Imam Ali mosque stood somberly waiting to bury a boy who, in the words of his father, was "like a flower." Haider Kathim, the caretaker, asked: "What's the sin of the children? What have they done?"

Strong Leads The State Press, 2006 If you could forgo one [coffee] a day, and stash the cash instead, in about 40 years with an 8 percent return you would have about a million dollars.

Five-Minute Drill Whats the best lead you found in todays news? Why did it work?

Exercise Break into six groups Review story notes on handout Write leads using five of the following: Summary Anecdotal Question Quote Staccato Direct Address Your deadline: 15 minutes!

Final Thought on Writing

Documents

Readers understand the basics. News (5W/H) Background, Context Readers care about it. –Impact –Human Dimension Strongest leads play here Gannett initiative