WRITING BASICS

Please read, digest, respond.

Point 1: Writing is the tool we use to express ideas in print. —Simple trumps complex.
—Short trumps long.
—Clear trumps muddled.
—The above is harder than it sounds. It requires vigilance. 

Point 2: The primary job of people who write the news (along with accuracy and fairness) is to clarify, sometimes even translate, for a mass audience.
-- Clarifying a complex idea or bureaucratic mouthful requires that the reporter understand what’s going on.
-- One of the biggest mistakes beginning reporters make: Trying to write something they don’t fully understand.
-- Don’t ever be afraid to ask a source (no matter how “important"): “Can you please explain that in terms that a fourth grader could understand?” Eighty percent of the time they won’t flinch at the question. The other 20 percent ... well, that’s their problem. Just ask them again. Remember: It’s not their name that goes on the story.

Point 3: Adhere to the basic laws of organization:
-- Keep the stuff that belongs together, together.
-- Follow the basic laws of chronology: First this happened, then that, then the other, and then the following summer, this other.
(You would be astounded to know how many beginning reporters write the journalistic equivalent of, “I went to the store. I made breakfast. I woke up. I bought some eggs. I came home,” instead of the chronological, “I woke up. I went to the store. I bought some eggs. I came home. I made breakfast.")
-- Use quotes, examples and anecdotes as illustrations of a summary statement or main point. Put the quote/ example AFTER the summary/point so that the two become a complete informational unit. Otherwise, the quote/ example will just hang in the air like a bad burrito.

Point 4: Adhere to the laws of how the human brain processes information. —In general, start sentences with the subject of the sentence rather than with an introductory phrase or clause.  ("The dog bit the cat” versus “After what seemed like an unending standoff between the two domesticated animals, the dog bit the cat.") Your reader’s brain will thank you.
—In general, use basic subject-verb-object sentence structures.
—In general, place elements in a sentence where they would be if you were speaking. ("On Tuesday, the commission voted against the measure” versus “The commission Tuesday voted against the measure.")
—In general, break up long complex sentences into separate sentences. Again, your reader’s brain…

Final Point: In my view, the Internet and digital communication is one of the most profound things to ever happen to people who write the news.
—It forces us to pay attention to concision, brevity, getting to the point, strong simple sentences, bullet lists and bits of information, logical groupings for quick and easy review, etc.

Comment, using the posting tools below, on at least one of these points for discussion.

Go to News Basics, if you have not already.

This post was a neat and concise reminder of how neat and concise I should always be as a reporter. Often times, I find myself wordy and over-dramatic when I should be more focused and aloof.

I also agree that the Internet has had a profound effect on the way people digest news. Like I said in discussion last week, the Internet age has taught us to read headlines rather than the whole news article. I don’t know how I quite feel about this—I like the depth that articles give, but I’m not sure how to create that for a generation of people who grew up on soundbites and headlines alone. I suppose that’s part of the industry-wide transformation we collectively must figure out.

lcbanes - 29 January 2009 10:44 AM

wordy and over-dramatic

L et al—I think this is a default position we all fall into… wordy and dramatic (or as Bettina says, following the dragon ... why is it so hard to be focused and simple? If I knew, I would be rich or famous or both…

Point 2:
A reporter should become an expert on the story topic before beginning to write, an editor once told me.
As a city hall reporter, I take a lot of governmental jargon and translating it for Peorians to digest. The first thing I do when I cover a new city is read. I read so much I could cry text. I read the general plan, the city code, the budget and then I go to department heads and review, just to make sure I understand.

Of course, I’ll still need explanation later on.