A news report follows a particular pattern in reporting as well as editing. Every newspaper might have its own style of writing but a general format followed by all the newspapers at base levels is systematically divided into several parts. Roughly speaking a news story structure follows 1-2-3-4 steps, that is:
1. The lead. What is the most important news? How can you write it in the clearest way and make it interesting too?
2. Elaborate on the lead. Two, three, four or five paragraphs that explain support and amplify lead
3. Key background and context of event, if needed; information that helps readers understands more about the news they are reading.
4. More elaboration of the news, in descending order of importance.
The main impetus lies in the body of the report. Once the introduction has been written, there are rules that must be applied to any following paragraphs. Each following paragraph should be about 30 words long which will help to present information in shorter doses and maintain interest longer. Each paragraph should aim to be as independent of the other paragraphs as far as possible (inverted pyramid structure). The journalist must present information in descending order of importance. To get a deeper understanding, a news story or report is divided into 5 parts namely;
- Headline – tells what the story is about
- Byline – shows who wrote the story
- Lead – tells the most important facts (5 W’s)
- Body – contains more information and details
- Ending – gives something to think about
Here is a sample article which consists of all these parts for easy understanding:
Headline – Train accident forces evacuation
Byline – By M J Saleem
Lead – The Banglore bound Muzaffarpur- Yesvantpur train derailed causing twenty deaths on Thursday leading to the resignation of the Railway Minister.
Body – Twenty persons were killed and 33 others injured when 11 bogies of Bangalore-bound Muzaffarpur- Yesvantpur Express derailed at Sitheri, about 90 km from here, early this morning.
The derailment occurred around 5.50 am, a Railway official said.
Top officials of the Southern Railway visited the spot and commenced an initial probe into the cause of the derailment.
Ending – The number of recent train accidents have become a serious concern for the government today. The government is planning some serious measures to avoid train accidents.
Other important parts of that make a newspaper complete are:
v News story
v Editorial
v Letters to the Editor
v Political Cartoon
Political Cartoon
Political Cartoons give the reader a view of the ‘thinking of the day’. The cartoon often uses satire to make a point and usually tries to evoke a strong emotional response for one side of the issue.
Editorial
An editorial is a brief essay of opinion about a timely and important topic. An effective editorial presents an informed argument that leads to a new course of action or a possible solution to a problem. Editorials are found in almost all newspapers and magazines.
An editorial has three main sections:
- The subject of the editorial is identified
- A discussion of the problem follows
- A call for action is made
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FAQs
The newspaper structure can be broken down into four key sections which includes the headline, byline, the lead, the body, and the tail.
What are the 5 main parts of a newspaper article? ›
A news report should include the following,
- Headline: It tells what the story is about.
- Byline: It tells about the writer of the story.
- Lead: Covers the most important facts.
- Body: Includes a detailed account of the event/occurrence.
- Ending: Talks about the solution or something to think about.
A newspaper article should contain these five main components: a headline, a byline, a lead/lede paragraph, an explanation, and any other additional information. A newspaper article should not include topic or closing sentences.
What are the three parts of a news story? ›
Broadcast news story has three parts: begins with LEAD, the attention getting device; followed by the BODY of the story and concludes with some WRAP-UP or summary. Lead- first or possibly two sentences as narrated by the anchor or reporter.
What is the common news structure? ›
Most journalists structure their articles using a method called the inverted pyramid, which places the most important information first and then trickles down to the least important.
What are the 10 structures of report? ›
Report Structure. Generally, a report will include some of the following sections: Title Page, Terms of Reference, Summary, Table of Contents, Introduction, Methods, Results, Main body, Conclusion, Recommendations, Appendices, and Bibliography.
What is newspaper layout? ›
Newspaper layout design is an essential aspect of creating an engaging and informative publication. The layout is the visual structure of the newspaper, and it plays a crucial role in determining how readers will engage with the content.
What is the structure of a short newspaper article? ›
How is a news article structured? News articles are structured like an inverted pyramid. The most important or crucial information is always presented to the reader up front, followed by additional story details. A news article concludes with less important supporting information or a summation of the reporting.
What is the most essential part of a newspaper? ›
The Lead: The lead could be seen as the most essential part of the newspaper structure. It should be one paragraph long, and by reading it, your audience should be able to understand exactly what your article is about and what you are reporting on.
How do you structure a report example? ›
Example report structure
- Introduction. 1.1 Purpose of the report. 1.2 Issues to be discussed and their significance. 1.3 Research methods. 1.4 Limitations and assumptions.
- Discussion. 2.1 Literature review. 2.1.1 Issue 1. 2.1.2 Issue 2. ...
- Conclusions.
- Recommendations. 4.1 Recommendation 1. 4.2 Recommendation 2.
- References.
- Appendices.
The inverted pyramid structure is the product of an old media technology—the telegraph. When news outlets would telegraph information over the wires, it made sense to use the inverted pyramid because the most vital information in the story was transmitted first.
What is the structure of most basic news stories? ›
The Inverted Pyramid - First developed and widely used during the Civil War, the inverted pyramid is best suited for hard news stories. The article begins with the lede and presents information in order of descending importance. The most important information comes first, followed by less important details.
What is the first line of an article called? ›
About Ledes. The introduction to a news article is called the 'lede' and is usually in the first paragraph as in an essay. The 'lede' is a deliberate misspelling of 'lead' to prevent confusion in the days when printing was done with lead type.
What is the structure of a hard news report? ›
Straight news/Hard news
This type of story typically follows the inverted pyramid style, which organizes information by descending order of importance or places the most newsworthy information at the beginning of the article.
What is the structure of a news media organization? ›
The newspaper organization has a defined structure to manage workflow and meet deadlines. At the top is the Editor-in-Chief who oversees the entire publication. Beneath them are resident editors who manage individual editions. News editors plan page layouts and assign stories. Reporters gather news in the field.
