It was a little hard to describe what a Cartridge lede, (but I know when I use them!) so I pulled out the reader from my journalism class. Here it is straight from the book, “Cartridge lead, sometimes referred to as the “staccato” or the ‘blind’ lead, is a few words or a sentence which puzzles readers and get them to read on. These leads must negotiate the delicate balance between tickling someone’s curiousity and being irritating.”

Usually the graf right after the cartridge solves the puzzle. The postal service one works quite well because it gets to the punchline quick. The problem with number 4 is that it crossed the line into irritating because it takes too long.

Jose

Lorinda - 03 June 2008 12:35 AM

I think I wrote a pretty good lede last week for my internship.  Here it is: 

A breeze rustled through the trees and dark clouds rumbled menacingly over Lake Ontario, but the weather held out for the first day of the Greater Rochester Soap Box Derby on Saturday.

Not that rain would have stopped this World Championship qualifying race.

Like it! Could argue that this is a “punchline lede”—i.e., you start off with a description of weather, then pull the rug out and say, not that it would make a difference. V. nice!!! you go, Chipster....

J.A. San Mateo - 03 June 2008 01:15 AM

I “Cartridge lead, sometimes referred to as the “staccato” or the ‘blind’ lead, is a few words or a sentence which puzzles readers and get them to read on. These leads must negotiate the delicate balance between tickling someone’s curiousity and being irritating.”

GUYS —I think this description “must negotiate the delicate balance between tickling curiosity and being irritating” IS A PERFECT definition of all non-news ledes… in other words, generate interest—but then, get to the point right away! A hard news lede leaves no question. a non-news lede always has the double job of generating interest, then SATISFYING the need to know! Right away.

Lorinda - 03 June 2008 12:35 AM

Oh, what the ledes all have in common, besides setting the scene, is they focus in on people.

Is that right?

DING DING DING DING!!!!

We have a winner! Lorinda, you win the coveted What These Ledes Have in Common Award!

Please adhere to the terms of this award as listed at the bottom of the page. This is a non-transferable award. YOu may not sell, beg, borrow or steal this award for any other purpose.....

(I would also argue that they have in common: Simple language; high focus, and utter clarity (even though a number of you guys didn’t love the staccato sports lede in #4, which, truth be told, was a COLUMN that was separate from the main news story about the Super Bowl Win!)

CONGRATULATIONS LORINDA!!!!!

I’ll have to agree with those who’ve chosen example number one. It’s the cleanest and easiest to follow. It delivers what it needs to deliver, without being so “hard” or life-less.

Good ledes give you just what you need to make you glad you read past the headline. Bad ledes, then, just leave you scratching your head or insulting the “lazy” and “unintelligent” writer. I’ve written a decent lede, I think. A story that I enterprised last summer. This was the last of three stories I had written on the subject.

HAYWARD — Local mothers, fathers, grandmothers, grandfathers, aunts and uncles can rest easier knowing that ice cream truck vendors have agreed, at the request of Hayward law enforcement, to stop selling imitation firearms from their trucks.

On Thursday, Hayward police Chief Lloyd Lowe and about 20 local ice cream truck vendors met at the Police Department to discuss issues within their industry. The main message: The sale of toy guns in Hayward has to stop."I don’t know how many of your trucks sell those,” Lowe said. “But that absolutely needs to stop. I want to give you the opportunity to clean up your own industry.”

P.S. It has multimedia, too. Though the soundslides seemed to be broken, in the past. Try it, let me know.

aaronlmorrison - 04 June 2008 12:41 AM

HAYWARD — Local mothers, fathers, grandmothers, grandfathers, aunts and uncles can rest easier knowing that ice cream truck vendors have agreed, at the request of Hayward law enforcement, to stop selling imitation firearms from their trucks.

GUYS!! ANALYSIS

Why this lede of Aaron’s above is so great:

But them, WHAMO!—they won’t sell firearms!

A classic punchline lede (1.) sets up an expectation, and then (2.) delivers an unexpected punch. This is probably, above, one of the best examples of its working well that I have ever run across.  Comments, questions, more ledes, party invitations (don’t forget to meet in STARBUCKS when the spirit moves you).

I apologize in advance for posting so late.

A great lede is one that compels a reader’s interest to read the entire story. A great lede lets the reader know why it’s an important story without giving everything away.

A bad lede is one that does nothing to interest the reader, confuses them or simply explains nothing about the story.

I don’t tend to think I am seasoned enough as a writer to say that I have written a “great” lede yet. Nevertheless, one that I am especially proud of came from a story I wrote last fall for Reznetnews.org. The story was about the damming of the Klamath River and the ramifications it has had on one of the tribal communities that are along the river:

“A tiny boat carried three teenagers to the mouth of the Klamath River on a bright, chilly afternoon. There, the river’s clear, fresh water empties into the mighty Pacific Ocean.
The students from Klamath, Calif., went to that spot last spring to fish and catch eels as part of a cultural program offered by their high school and the Yurok Tribe Fisheries Program.
The trip wasn’t just another school activity. As Yuroks, they sought to preserve their culture, which, like the river, is struggling to survive.”

I like the lede of Ex. 3 the most. It was a unique lede for a story that I would be compelled to read (sounds like a fascinating one) I would like to use this style of summarizing a person (kind of like a mini-profile) for a story in the future.

Each of the example ledes deals with the conclusion of something; retirement, death, sentencing and coverage of a huge sporting event.

tsmith - 05 June 2008 12:26 AM

Each of the example ledes deals with the conclusion of something; retirement, death, sentencing and coverage of a huge sporting event.

DING DING DING DING!!!!!

We have another winner to the Bonus Question!

VANESSA SAID:

First I would like to apologize for not getting on the site sooner. I was traveling and didn’t stop to check my e-mail at all throughout the trip because of our tight schedule. I will be sure to keep up with the assignments.

My favorite lede was the third one. I found it to be both captivating and informative in a creative and concise manner.

Ledes are so critical when writing a story. If you confuse a person with your lede, you’ve instantly lost their attention and can pretty much guarantee they will not read on.

That just goes to show, you need to really make it clear in the lede what you have to say about the story.

Regards

Abelle

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dossier surendettement