Unit 2:

Writing For Print Media

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In any newspaper company, the

department responsible for determining

the contents of the newspaper is the

Editorial Department.

The life span of a daily newspaper is 24

hours a day. Because of that, the two

main and important roles of journalist

are writing and editing of news

stories.

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The key elements of a News Report are:

1. Headline

2. Byline

3. Placeline

4. Lead

5. Body

6. Ending

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1. Headline

- Catches your attention

- Sums up the story

2. Byline

- Writer’s name

- Writer’s Specialty, e.g. sports, food, crime, current events

Example:

Hospital director stabbed

By Saifulizam Mohamad dan Amran Mulup

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3. Placeline & Date-Where the story begins and reported

Examples:

Utusan Malaysia: KUALA LUMPUR 3 May –

Kosmo. KOTA BHARU-

The Sun. PETALING JAYA (May 16, 2013)

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4. Leads

The most important structural element of a

story is the lead or "intro" — (the story's

first, or leading).

Charnley (2010) states that "an effective

lead is a 'brief, sharp statement of the

story's essential facts.'“

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The news reporter must master the lead. The lead is the first

paragraph of a news story. In fact, the lead is the most

important part of a news story because:-

1. it contains the most important facts of such a news

story.

2. summarizes the facts of a news story and it must be

attractive, interesting and readable

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The lead could extend to the second paragraph of the story

but under normal circumstances, it should not go into the

third paragraph.

Mencher (2010) says a lead should not exceed 35 words.

According to Mansor (2010) is ideally 20-25 words in

length.

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According to Mencher (2010) “The lead sentence

usually contains one idea and follows the subject-verb-

object sentence structure for clarity.”

This means the lead should begin with the subject,

followed by an active verb and conclude with the object

of the verb. This structure also makes the reporter to

write simple and short sentences.

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IMPORTANCE OF THE LEAD

1. The Lead Summarizes The News:

It gives the reader the sense of the story to follow and takes

him or her to the supporting facts or claims presented in the

opening statements.

2. The Lead Answers The Questions Raised By The 5Ws And H:

However, not all the answers provided by the 5Ws and H must

be present in every lead to make it acceptable but no

important one should be left out or omitted.

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3. The Lead Must Emphasize The News Feature:

The lead is expected to play up the most interesting or significant

aspect of the story. The news feature must be played up in the lead.

4. The Lead Must Attract Readers To The Story:

As the window of the story, the lead must get the attention of the reader

and sustain this till he or she gets into the story.

5. The Lead Should Suggest The Headline:

From the lead it becomes easy for the sub-editor or editor to cast the

headline for the story. The lead should help suggest this.

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Example of Lead:-

KUALA LUMPUR 24 Marc - Clark Barr, 45, Leah Tard, 42, and

Eileen Dover, 17 were injured when a bolt of lightning struck their

private plane, a Cessna 812, at 9:12 p.m. Friday. Barr suffered a

fractured leg, Tard cracked several of her ribs, and Dover, who

remains in intensive care at Serdang Hospital, broke both her

wrists and ankles after nearly drowning in the river after the plane

crashed. .

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5. News Body

The rest of the follow-up story should follow

the same balancing act of combining the

latest news with background information.

Generally, the newer developments should

be placed higher in the story, while the older

information should be lower down.

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Your article body should consist of supporting data and quotes

from those people that you have interviewed. You can also insert

statistics and images depending on the kind of story that you're

covering.

As your audience are pressed for time, find ways on how you

can make your whole article relatively short but meaty. You can

do this by using only the most effective words and by eliminating

irrelevant details from your content.

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Example of News Body:

Lead: KUALA LUMPUR- 3 May Police yesterday arrested a man who they say set the fire last week that killed two people in a house.

News Body: Police said Larson Jenkins, 23, used rags soaked with gasoline to set the fire at the house that killed his girlfriend, Lorena Halbert, 22, and her mother, Mary Halbert, 57.

Detective Jerry Groenig said Jenkins was apparently angry because Halbert had recently broken up with him.

The fire started around 3 a.m. last Tuesday and quickly swept through the house. Lorena and Mary Halbert were pronounced dead at the scene. No one else was injured.

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3. Ending

Placing a less important information.

Only to support the body and-lead.

Closing is the least important thing in

the news but pity if omitted.

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Example of Ending:

Lead: KUALA LUMPUR- 3 May. Police yesterday arrested a man who they say set the fire last week that killed two people in a house.

News Body: Police said Larson Jenkins, 23, used rags soaked with gasoline to set the fire at the house that killed his girlfriend, Lorena Halbert, 22, and her mother, Mary Halbert, 57.

Detective Jerry Groenig said Jenkins was apparently angry because Halbert had recently broken up with him.

Ending: The fire started around 3 a.m. last Tuesday and quickly swept through the house. Lorena and Mary Halbert were pronounced dead at the scene. No one else was injured.

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