9—This Week in NewsHounds Online (Oct. 18-24, 2009)
Read . . . . . . . . . . . .
• Today’s WORD on Journalism (every day)
• Go back to Harrower, pp. 102-103, and reread the two pieces about covering speeches. Note, especially, the annotated speech by Ann Coulter at Kansas (Nick will like this).
• Then (assuming you’ve already done your Gartner speech), go to the new post on NewsHounds slugged Gartner Speech. In that piece, I discuss the issues of covering speeches, and then offer my version of the Gartner Speech story (which I wrote this afternoon in an hour, FYI).
• Then read the other new posts for this week (in the index, at left): On Fred and Michelangelo, nut grafs and...
Looking Ahead . . . . . . . . .
• Participate in Week 9 NewsTalk on Blackboard
• Then (assuming you’ve already done your Gartner speech), go to the new post on NewsHounds slugged Gartner Speech. In that piece, I discuss the issues of covering speeches, and then offer my version of the Gartner Speech story (which I wrote this afternoon in an hour, FYI).
• Then read the other new posts for this week (in the index, at left): On Fred and Michelangelo, nut grafs and...
Looking Ahead . . . . . . . . .
• Outside story. This week I’d like you to think of an event to cover, and prepare to write a story about it for NEXT WEEK. You must PITCH me a story to cover this week—sooner is better. The story itself will be due NEXT FRIDAY (Oct. 30). This story can be anything you like—a speech, an event, a feature story about rodeo or scrapbooking (!)... whatever.
If you’re on campus, it should be easy to find an event—a lecture, a program, something public. This is the easiest way to fulfill this first outside writing assignment, because a speaker basically talks at you and you take notes. For these kinds of stories, try to get some reaction from the audience (including the audience member’s name and who it is—student, housewife, ROTC cadet, whatever). Alternatively, following Harrower’s advice in Ch. 6, which you read last week, look for a feature story—someone who does something interesting, who has just returned from Chile, who is passionate about __________ (anything).
Check your local community and campus calendars for events, or noodle interesting feature topics, and email me by Wednesday or Thursday (or sooner) with a couple of topics. A good place to find story ideas and events is in your local newspaper, where coming events are listed in briefs (Ducks Anonymous, Audubon, Zoning Committee (zzzz!), community group presentations, etc.).
For each story you pitch to me, include:
a) the story “slug” (e.g., Jones Speech, Bike Shop, etc.);
b) a sentence on the specific topic (e.g., Peace Corps official Jimmy Jones will speak about latest developments... or The Cyclotron Bike Shop on 400 East specializes in unicycles!);
c) Specific sources—who you will feature. (e.g., Jimmy Jones, Peace Corps guy; Bobby Bikehead, the owner of the bike shop who is an international unicycle star.) More than one source is encouraged (The Statesman, for example, requires at least three different sources for all stories.)
And, as always, If you’re on campus, it should be easy to find an event—a lecture, a program, something public. This is the easiest way to fulfill this first outside writing assignment, because a speaker basically talks at you and you take notes. For these kinds of stories, try to get some reaction from the audience (including the audience member’s name and who it is—student, housewife, ROTC cadet, whatever). Alternatively, following Harrower’s advice in Ch. 6, which you read last week, look for a feature story—someone who does something interesting, who has just returned from Chile, who is passionate about __________ (anything).
Check your local community and campus calendars for events, or noodle interesting feature topics, and email me by Wednesday or Thursday (or sooner) with a couple of topics. A good place to find story ideas and events is in your local newspaper, where coming events are listed in briefs (Ducks Anonymous, Audubon, Zoning Committee (zzzz!), community group presentations, etc.).
For each story you pitch to me, include:
a) the story “slug” (e.g., Jones Speech, Bike Shop, etc.);
b) a sentence on the specific topic (e.g., Peace Corps official Jimmy Jones will speak about latest developments... or The Cyclotron Bike Shop on 400 East specializes in unicycles!);
c) Specific sources—who you will feature. (e.g., Jimmy Jones, Peace Corps guy; Bobby Bikehead, the owner of the bike shop who is an international unicycle star.) More than one source is encouraged (The Statesman, for example, requires at least three different sources for all stories.)
• Participate in Week 9 NewsTalk on Blackboard
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