NEWSWRITING

Lecture on Campus Journalism

by : Sir Pros Bonifacio
DEFINITION OF NEWS

 Lyle Spencer, former dean of the School of

Journalism, Syracuse University, has defined
news “any event, idea or opinion that is timely,
that interest and affects a large number of
people in the community, and that is capable of
being understood by them.”
CHARACTERISTICS OF
NEWS
CHARACTERISTICS OF NEWS

1. Timeliness / Immediacy (Napapanahon)

A news is to be reported immediately so the
readers will appreciate it.
Radios and televisions provided clients with
fresh news round the clock. Radio and
television reporters account the event as it is
happening and with the use of modern
technology, complete with the action and
drama that entails the news.
CHARACTERISTICS OF NEWS

Radios and television news programs use today

in their reporting to signify the freshness of the
news while newspapers, because of the lag in
the printing process use yesterday.
CHARACTERISTICS OF NEWS

Example:

Radio/TV: President Aquino today ordered the

creation of an agency to investigate the real
cause of the rice shortage.

Newspaper: President Aquino yesterday

ordered the creation of an agency to investigate
the real cause of rice shortage.
CHARACTERISTICS OF NEWS

However, there are some events that may have

happened in the past but remained
newsworthy, this happens when the events are
disclosed for the first time or a new
development resurfaced. The Hello Garci
scandal and the COMELEC automation scam
has happened years back, but every time
election season come, these two events always
pop up
CHARACTERISTICS OF NEWS

2. Proximity / Nearness (Lapit ng

pangyayari)

Readers will be more interested to know what

is happening around them, in their
neighborhood or community because this will
affect their lives.
CHARACTERISTICS OF NEWS

3. Prominence (Tanyag/Kilala)

This refers to both people and places. Political

leaders, high ranking government officials, head of
giant corporations, celebrities in the film industry
and sports, people with extraordinary feat, a major
achievement or by simply being in the right place
at the right time, as a witness to a crime or
accident, or becoming an instant hero by saving
lives, or returning a huge amount of money found
(honesty).
CHARACTERISTICS OF NEWS

Places become prominent if they become

scene of big events. Baguio City was front page
for many days when devastated by the July 16,
1990 tremor. Mt. Pinatubo became known
around the globe when in erupted in 1991. The
Spratly, a group of islands in the South China
Sea, is always in the news due to claims over
the territory by six countries including the
Philippines.
CHARACTERISTICS OF NEWS

4. Significance (Kahalagahan)

This refers not only to the importance of the

event but more on how this event will affect the
lives of people. The significance of the event
must not be relied on facts only but the
reporter must interpret or explain the meaning
of the facts.
CHARACTERISTICS OF NEWS

5. Oddity / Unusualness (Kakaiba)

Any event that deviates from the ordinary is

newsworthy. The news on a mudfish baby
borne to a couple in Nueva Ecija in October
1990 was front page in some Manila Dailies.
When dog bites man is ordinary but when man
bites dog, then that is news.
SOURCES OF NEWS
SOURCES OF NEWS

1. Traditional Sources
The government has always been the source
of traditional news. Going with the Republican
dictum the public office is a public trust,
public officials are constantly under
observation by media; any wrong doing is
therefore a media fiesta.
SOURCES OF NEWS

The traditional sources include the Executive

offices like the office of the President and its
various departments; the Senate and the
House of Representative; the Supreme Court
and the lower courts; the constitutional bodies
like the COMELEC, COA, CSC, the local
government, the police, and many other
institutions.
SOURCES OF NEWS

In school, traditional sources of news are from

the office of the school administrator/
principal, teachers of different subject areas;
school activities like the celebration of
foundation day, commemoration of Lingo ng
WIka, Boy/Girl Scout week, school Intramurals
and many other school activities which are
newsworthy.
SOURCES OF NEWS

2. Non-Traditional Sources

These are the activities, projects and plans of

the supreme student government, youth
organizations, around the campus.
METHODS OF GATHERING NEWS
METHODS OF GATHERING NEWS

 Actual coverage of an event.

 Interview with school personalities (prominent

people)

 Writing from documents such as speeches,

policies, research/special reports.
TYPES OF NEWS STORIES
TYPES OF NEWS STORIES

 Action Story –
this is something visual, moving and concrete.
It is based on actual coverage or presented as
if the writer witnessed the events.

 Idea Story –
news taken from reports and documents. This
type of story, which is abstract and static, can
also be called substance story.
NEWS CATEGORIES
NEWS CATEGORIES

 Novelty – this includes anything new:

discoveries, inventions, latest in fashion, what’s
in among students.

 Personal Impact – the NFA rice shortage,

increase in oil prices and commodities,
transport fares (National level).
NEWS CATEGORIES

 Local News – events around the school will

draw more readers than news from other
schools.

 Conflicts – this may involve physical or mental

conflict: man versus man, man versus animal,
man versus nature or man versus himself.
Examples are stories on athletics and
journalism contest.
THE LEAD
THE LEAD

News stories always begin with a lead. This

maybe a single word, a phrase, a clause, a
paragraph, or a series of paragraphs.

Its main function is not only to introduce the

story, but to tell the story in a capsule form. The
lead is the summary of the story.
KINDS OF LEAD

1. Conventional or Summary Lead –

This is used in straight news to answer right

away all or any of the 5Ws and/ or the H. Your
lead maybe one of the following:
KINDS OF LEAD

A. Who Lead – when the person involved is

more prominent than what he does.

President Arroyo addressed yesterday the

graduates of the Philippine Military Academy in
Baguio.
KINDS OF LEAD

B. What Lead – this is used when the event is

more important than the person involved in
the news.

The National Assessment Test to all grade IV

pupils will be given on February 22 as
announced by DepEd Secretary Jesli Lapuz.
KINDS OF LEAD

C. Where Lead – use this kind of lead when

the place is unique and no prominent person
is involved.

Clark Air Base – Philippines will be the site of

the next general assembly of the UN leaders.
KINDS OF LEAD

D. When Lead – this lead is rarely used but

when speaking of deadlines, holidays and
important dates, it is very effective.

April 30 is the deadline for the filing of income

tax returns.
KINDS OF LEAD

E. Why Lead – use when the reason is more

unique than what happens.

Poverty pushed Jose Nakpil to rob a bank

which eventually led to his death in a shootout.
KINDS OF LEAD

F. How Lead – use this lead when the manner,

mode, means, or method is achieving the
story is unnatural.

By appealing to the provincial government for

the procurement of needed materials,
Masantol High School was able to finished the
construction of its covered court.
KINDS OF LEAD

2. Grammatical Beginning Lead

Sometimes to emphasize a feature news, the

lead is introduced by a kind of grammatical
from which is usually a phrase or a clause.
KINDS OF LEAD

 Prepositional Phrase Lead – it is introduced by a

proposition
 Infinitive Phrase Lead – it begins with the sign of the
infinitive to plus the main verb.\
 Participial Phrase Lead – it is introduced by present/past
participle form of the verb.
 Gerundial Phrase Lead – it is introduced by a gerund (a
verbal noun ending in ing)
 Clause Lead – the lead may be dependent or subordinate
or it may either be a noun or a adjectival or adverbial
clause.
KINDS OF LEAD

3. Novelty Lead

This kind of lead is best used in writing news

features. They are written to attract attention or
carry out a definite purpose.
KINDS OF LEAD

 Astonisher Lead – uses an interjection or

exclamatory sentence.
 Contrast Lead – describes two

extremes or opposites for emphasis.

 Epigram Lead – opens by quoting a common
expression, verse, or epigram which is familiar in
the locality.
 Picture Lead – describes a person, a place, or an
event, at the same time creating a mental picture
of the subject in the mind of the reader.
KINDS OF LEAD

 Descriptive lead – it is used when few descriptive

words can vividly formulate an imagery.
 Parody Lead – consists of a line/s from a song,
poem, which are well-known.
 Punch Lead – a short, forceful word or expression.
 One Word Lead
 Quotation Lead – consists of the speaker’s direct
words which are very striking.
 Question Lead – an answer to a question which is the
basis of the news story.
 News Structure

THE INVERTED PYRAMID

 LEAD
Elaboration of a W

Elaboration
of another
Further

THE INVERTED PYRAMID

 Who:Four people
 What: (Accident)

 killed when two delivery trucks collide

 How: they were on their way to a town fiesta

when two delivery trucks collided

 Where: Barangay sta. Isabel, Malolos, Bulacan

 When: Yesterday
 Four people who were on their way to a town
fiesta were killed while six of their companions
were seriously injured when two delivery trucks
collided in Barangay Sta. Isabel, Malolos,
Bulacan , yesterday