Types of Story Leads

Lead Every news story begins with an introduction called the hap. This may be a single word, a phrase, a cla intent, a brief sentence, an entire paragraph or a series of paragraphs. The main functions of the go bad, aside from introducing the news story, ar to tell the story in capsule form and to answer right away the questions the reader would naturally ask. A good lead answers all the important questions of the reader, indicates the attendant circumstances if they atomic number 18 all important, and arouses the readers interest to continue instruction the story.The lead is the beginning, the most important structural element of a story. Charnley (1966) stated that, an effective lead is a brief, sharp statement of the storys essential facts. The lead is usually the first sentence, or in some cases the first two sentences, and is ideally 20-25 words in length. Leads should * open with bright, interesting, bright nouns and verbs be brief (often that 20-30 words) be, for the most part, one sentence in length be crisp and to the point effectively summarize the story disport the feature allow in attribution (the source) if needed for credibility ive the title for any person mentioned not include personal pronouns such as we and you not include reporter opinion Summary lead The typical lead is called a summary lead or straight summary lead, and it, of course, summarizes the story. The journalist must, therefore, write a clear, fairly short sentence that reveals all, telling the end result of the story. Someone should be able to read the lead and be informed about what happened without reading the rest of the story. A summary lead should answer as many of the 5Ws and H as possible who, what, when, where, why and how.The 5 Ws and H provide the news writer with quick and convenient means of organizing the lead of a story. They also provide the framework or structure for organizing the lead of a story. This is one of the most common forms of hard news story. But, the question is that how do we decide what is most important and what should follow in descending order of wideness? Here, we must use our own judgment. Some questions to ask What will affect the readers the most? What questions does the lead raise that need to be answered immediately? What supporting quotes are strongest?Below are examples of leads which feature the various 5Ws & H. The words that make up the W that is featured are in bold face type. WHO lead utilise when the person involved is to a greater extent prominent than what he does or what happens to him. -Reckless drivers who dont seem to be drunk may well be high on cocaine or marijuana, according to roadside tests that indicate drugs may rival alcohol as a hazard on the highway. -Monica Lewinsky, the former low-level aide at the center of the current White House investigation, is willing to submit to a polygraph examination in exchange for complete immunity from prosecution, her lawyer said Sunday.WHAT lead Us ed when the event or what took place is more important than the person involved in the story. -A pack of wild monkeys terrorized a seaside resort township south of Tokyo last week, attacking 30 people and sending eight of them to the hospital with bites. (This also co-features the who. ) -A Soyus spacecraft docked flawlessly with the Mir space station Saturday, transport a fresh crew of two Russian cosmonauts and a Frenchman to the orbiting outpost along with a bottle of French wine. WHY lead Used when the contend is more prominent or unique than what happens. With more amateurs cutting wood for use as an alternative to high-priced heating oil, hospitals are coping with an increase number of injuries due to chain-saw accidents, reported the American College of Surgeons. WHERE lead Used when the place is unique and no prominent person is involved. -Red China will be the website of the next International Film Festival. WHEN lead Rarely used as the reader presumes the story to be t imely. However, this lead is useful when speaking of deadlines, holidays and important dates. -Today, approximately to the hour, the Revolutionary Government was proclaimed by President Corazon Aquino.HOW lead Used when the manner, mode, means, or method of achieving the story is unnatural way. -Louisiana-Pacific Corp. plans to sell seven out-of-state lumber mill and expand production at 17 others in order to boost output by up to 40 percent. (The how in this lead is also the what. ) change leads Novelty leads differ fromsummary leads inthat they make no attempt to answer all of the five Ws and the H. Asthenameimplies transmutationleads are novel. They use different writing approaches to present different news situations to bring in the readers attention and arouse curiosity.Type of Novelty Lead Example CONTRAST The line of reasoning lead compares two opposite extremes, generally dramatize a story. The comparisons most frequently used are tragedy with comedy, age with youth, th e past with the present and the bonnie with the ugly. In 1914, the United States entered the First World War with a Navy of 4,376 officers, 68,680 men, 54 airplanes, one airship, three balloons and one air station. Today, there are more than 500,000 active duty officers and enlisted personnel, 475 ships and 8,260 aircraft in our Navy. PICTURE The picture lead draws a pictural word of the person or thing in the story. I t allows the reader to see the person or thing as you saw it. Thin and unshaven , his clothes drooping from his body like rags on a scarecrow, Frank Brown, USN, today told naval authorities about six-week ordeal in an open rubber boat in the South China Sea. The new principal, although only at his early thirties, is already silver-haired. He seldom talks, but when he does, he talks with sense. FREAK The freak lead is the most novel of the novelty leads.As the name implies, the freak lead employs a play on words, alliteration, poetry or an unusual typographical ar rangement to introduce the facts in the story and to attract the readers attention. For sale One guided missile destroyer. The Navy is thinking about inserting this advertisement. $ammy $mith, who i$ just $even, wa$ digging in the $and at $amsons beach today and gue$$ what he found? BACKGROUND The background lead is similar to a picture lead, except for one important difference. It draws a vivid word picture of the news setting, surroundings or circumstances. High seas, strong winds and heavy overcast provided the setting for a dramatic mission of mercy in the North Atlantic on the first day of the new year. The PNC campus was turned into a miniature carnival ground Sept. 1 during the 85th F-Day celebration of the College. change with buntings and multi-colored lights, the college quadrangle was a grand setting for a barrio fiesta. PUNCH The punch lead consists of a blunt, explosive statement designed to surprise or seismic disturbance the reader. The president is dead. Frida y the 13th is over, but the casualty list is still growing.Victory Day Magsaysay High School celebrated March 18 its 5th victory in the city-wide journalism contests. QUESTION The question lead features a pertinent query that arouses the readers curiosity and makes them want to read the body of the story for answers. Phrase this lead as a rhetorical question. How does pay in the Navy compare with civilian wagers? Has the space age affected the role of the Navy? QUOTATION The quotation lead features a short, eye catching quote or remark, usually set in quotation marks.A quote lead should be used only when it is so important or remarkable that it overshadows the other facts in the story. You really dont know what freedom is until you have had to escape from Communist captivity, says Bob Denglar, a former Navy lieutenant and an escape from a Viet Cong prison camp. The youth in the New Republic have become partners of the government in its battle for progress and advancement, thus spoke PNC Dean of Instruction Rebecca D. Alcantara to some 400 student delegates to the 1998 Hi-Y-H-teens Leadership Training Seminar held Dec. 6-39 at the College Auditorium. DIRECT ADDRESS The direct process lead is aimed directly at the readers and makes them collaborators with facts in the story. It usually employs the pronouns you and your. Your pay will increase by ten percent next month. You can receive a college education Navy expense if you qualify under a new program announced this week. References http//journalism20. nuvvo. com/lesson/7587-lead-of-a-news-story www. angelfire. com http//photographytraining. tpub. com