What Makes a Story Newsworthy?
OK, so you wanna be a newshound, but where
d’ya start?
Aren’t newshounds supposed to have a keen nose for news? For some Young Reporters, such a supersniffer just comes naturally. Other kids need to develop theirs.
Good reporters are curious about almost everything, but not everything is newsworthy. If only there were some sort of yardstick to help kids measure up a potential news story.
Here are some questions you should ask yourself as a reporter:
- Will Bear’s readers (kids) find this interesting?
- Is it a TOPIC they need to know (like how
to prevent swine flu from spreading
at school)?
- Is the story timely (not old)?
- Can I gather the facts—the 5 W’s
and H—to complete this story?
As a Matter of Fact!
News is factual. And every reporter, whether the person’s a brand new Young Reporter or a coffee chugging, typewriter lugging crusty ol’ newshound, needs to collect the same facts for every story—known as the
5 W’s and H (WHO, WHAT, WHERE, WHEN, WHY and HOW).
Sticking to the 5 W’s and H makes gathering the facts very straightforward.
And it’s up to the reporter to find the best way
to get the facts.
Asking Questions—Interviews!
Some facts are easy to get—and are just a click away on the computer. For example, if you’re doing a story about Michael Jackson, you can get essential info like his birth date, where he lived, the names of his parents, brothers, sisters, and three kids, etc., all online.
But there have been tens of thousands of Michael Jackson stories done since he died. So as a reporter, you need a way to make the story fresh for Bear’s readers. Interviews are a way to make your story special.
Interview a few kids at your school to find out what their favorite MJ songs are. Even ask your principal or teacher a few questions about what they think about his passing. And if there’s someone at your school who dresses like the King of Pop, you definitely need to ask the WHY question!
People often share their opinions when you interview them. WHAT made the Mesquite Elementary win in the soccer playoffs so exciting?
Or WHY was the loss such a heartbreaker for your players? Remember, when it comes to interviews, you can report the fact that a person shared a certain opinion. And when that person says something important for your story, write down the exact words he or she uses so you can quote that person (use quotation marks to indicate what the person said).
As a Young Reporter, you’re free to cover the stories that you’d like. Some stories can be complicated. And if you’re not an expert on that subject, no worries! Just find someone to interview who is an expert. Maybe it’s a meteorologist (weather expert) talking about how we are behind on our annual rainfall amounts. Maybe it’s an astronomer who discovered a lot of ice on the moon. Sometimes finding the right person will make gathering the 5 W’s and H a snap!
And for those aspiring Young Reporters who want to cover famous folks, celebrity interviews are a big thrill. People from presidents to pop stars have answered our Young Reporters’ questions!
Whenever possible, set up an interview in advance and come well-prepared. Unless you’re interviewing someone famous, the first question you should ask is how to spell his or her name and what position does that person hold.
Have several good questions, and a pen and a pad to write down what the person says. Handheld tape recorders can help you get the quotes just right. And if the person speaks too fast to keep up, politely ask the interviewee to repeat it or to slow down a bit. At the end, remember to thank the person and get a contact e-mail address or phone number in case you need to ask another question.
Now It’s Time to Write Your First News Story!
In the news biz, Bear Essential competes for every one of its readers. A person could read a book, magazine or online stuff instead. And let’s not forget TV and video game time!
That’s why newspapers have to get off to a strong start in their stories. The first part of your news story is called the “lead.” Start your lead off with the strongest, most captivating facts. Generally, leads are short and hard hitting. Try to keep sentences in your lead to 25 words or less. Your lead paragraph usually should be about three sentences long.
Keep your news writing simple and straightforward. Remember that you’re telling a story, a true story, to your reader.
Interestingly, reporters usually adopt an impersonal point of view in their news writing. That’s because news isn’t about the reporter’s personal view or opinion. In fact, the reporter is supposed to set his or her feelings aside when it comes to covering the news. Reporters call this objectivity. Save your views and opinions for writing up reviews or editorial (opinion) pieces.
Reporters also need to write up their facts in an accurate and balanced way.
ACCURATE means that you present the facts as they are, without distorting them. Balanced reporting means that you make the effort to get all sides of a story and present them fairly, especially if you’re covering a controversial subject.
When it comes to organizing the rest of your story, it can help to picture an upside-down pyramid. Your most interesting, hardest-hitting stuff is at the top, fat part of this pyramid. And as you get into your subsequent paragraphs, the facts you present should be less and less important. And by the time you’re down to your last paragraph, you should be giving interesting details that probably won’t affect the rest of the story if they are cut by the editor for space reasons.
With some additional big tips to help get you started, two long-time Young Reporters share their ideas in the sidebar to the right!
Tip-top Reporters
Give Reporting Tips!
We aren’t born great writers. And you don’t have to be the best writer in the world to write for Bear Essential News or to broadcast your story on KVOA-4. In fact, all Young Reporter stories are edited and brought up to the same standards before they’re printed in the newspaper. This is the same process that professional reporters go through with their stories!
By comparing your original news story with what gets printed, you can develop as a young writer. Our best Young Reporters have been with us for years! Two of them are Ri’Ann Holmes, a homeschooler from Phoenix, and Shane Weinstein, who just started high school at Ironwood Ridge. Both of these outstanding reporters joined the program back in 2004.
Ri’Ann and her family travel a lot. They moved here from Trinidad, an island off the coast of Venezuela. In Phoenix, Ri’Ann loved picking up Bear Essential News at her neighborhood library. “There was a little ad in the paper saying, ‘Write for us.’ I told my mom about it, and she said, ‘OK,’” Ri’Ann remembers.
While she enjoys writing about her adventures traveling, she also covers upcoming family flicks. A few months back, she landed an interview with the director and the producer of the Disney/Pixar movie “Up.” Even the hotel was amazing. “Meeting them was a thrill. And I normally wouldn’t get into a place like the Ritz-Carlton, which was pretty cool,” she shares.
Finding stories can be the toughest part of being a Young Reporter. “Start with something you like—maybe your favorite hobby or a place you like to go to. You can even write about your background, explaining who you are to your readers,” Ri’Ann suggests. “Definitely start with something that’s close to you.”
As a homeschooler, Ri’Ann knows she has it good. “I’ve done plenty of interviews on weekdays during schooltime. It’s just another curricular activity for me,” she points out.
When she picks a story, she tries to find one that both kids and parents will enjoy reading. “Be open to everything to be a well-rounded reporter,” she adds.
Ever since he was little, Shane thought Bear Essential News was really cool. When he saw the ad calling for Young Reporters, he knew it was a great opportunity to get his stories published.
Shane has interviewed a three-time bull riding champion, country music stars and movie stars like Seth Rogen, Kiefer Sutherland and Jack Black, to name a few.
“Write about anything that interests you, whether it’s sports, a local event, a chess tournament. Write about something that you enjoy or a unique experience you’ve had,” Shane suggests.
Besides sharpening his writing skills, being a Young Reporter has taught Shane all sorts of stuff. “Not giving up is definitely the biggest point,” he shares.
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