10 Steps to Writing a Story – Broadcast Journalism

1. Find a topic.
-What is your story about?
-Who is your audience?
-Why is the this story important to your audience?

2. Find an angle.
-What about your topic?
-More specifically, what is important about your topic?
-What should the reader learn?
-summarize in 3 words: subject, verb, object
-wife awaits solider

3. Collect information.
-Who are the experts for this story?
-Do you need opposing points of view?
-What interview questions should I ask?
-What other research must be done to complete the story?

4. Conduct the interview.
-Ask open ended questions.
-Get good sounds bytes. A PIECE OF AUDIO THAT CAN STAND ALONE.
-Have the person restate the question in the interview.
-Interview three people, and ask three questions

5. Shoot your reporter Stand-UP.
-Should have a good idea what story is about
-Stand-UP should provide information that audience doesn't know
-Use Stand-UP for transition from one location to the next
-No first person: I went

6. Organize your sound bytes.
-What quotes should I use?
-How can I organize the quotes to tell a story?
-What are my gold nuggets?
-Sprinkle the nuggets throughout the story!

7. Write segues in your story.
-Use words that tie the interviews together.
-What other information can I add to the story?
-Can the story stand on its own?

8. Write the Beginning and End of your story.
-Write the body first
-Best sound bytes for beginning and end
-Paraphrase a sound byte at the beginning
-Leave then with strongest sound byte at end
-Leave them with hope

9. Write ins and outs (if necessary).
-What should the anchors say to introduce my story or bring it to a close? No scoop went to find out.
-How should the story begin and end?
-Use attention getters at the introduction but avoid rhetorical questions?

10. Collect B-ROLL to add to your story (throughout steps 4-9)
-How can video enhance my story?
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*Steps 4-8 in your story are called the A-ROLL.