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Writing Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [journalism]

This tag should be used for questions about writing practices relating to journalism, such as style guides, ethics and ways to publish.

This tag should be used for questions about writing practices relating to journalism, such as guides, and ways of .

65 questions
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6 answers

How long does it take to write a 1000-word news article?

I write tech articles for my blog and for a news outlet here in my country (mostly in French). I've been doing this for years, but I've always thought that I was slow in readying my stories. I am not talking about the 'seek-and-collect' information…
ahmed
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4 answers

When quoting a person's informal speech, how much liberty do you have to make changes to what they say?

Even during a formal interview for a news article, people speak informally. They say "uhm", they cut off sentences half-way through, they interject phrases like "you know?", and they make innocent grammatical mistakes. As somebody who wants to…
Jason Indigo
7
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3 answers

Would George Orwell get hired in today's expert climate?

I've asked the question a few times before about how to get published in newspapers and magazines, and the most common response has been, by far: "what are your qualifications to write about the piece?" This had me interested. What qualifications…
user31078
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2 answers

Why do newswriters separate women when they report on disasters?

It's commonly known that the news reports female casualties separately. As in "four people were shot, including one woman". What is the reasoning behind this? Is anyone who knows about the news reporting process able to answer?
James Altizer
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6
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1 answer

Is focus more important in journalism than truth and facts?

Take the following short story. Let's imagine that it's an important even that should be reported on. One day, Little Red Riding Hood’s mother said to her, “Take this basket of goodies to your grandma’s cottage, but don’t talk to strangers on the…
user3280964
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1 answer

As a journalist, how do I learn about impending legislation or executive orders?

How do news companies find out that the government plans to pass a law in a couple of years, or that the president is about to sign an executive order? Do they contact the government workers and ask to be notified of any news that the government…
user180969
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4
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2 answers

How to verify anonymous sources in journalism?

When working with journalistic sources who, fearing for their own safety, must not be identified, how can one cite them in a way that retains credibility? Are there technical solutions to this, perhaps some kind of anonymous key-based trust system?…
Andreas Jansson
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3
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1 answer

Difference between News Analysis and Opinion?

I am looking to get a better understanding of different categories of material written in a newspaper. I had assumed two main types: 1) News (i.e. reporting of facts) -> objective (not debatable). 2) Opinion/editorial (i.e. interpretation) ->…
get_going
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Types of articles in journalism

I would like to know which are the main article categories a journalist is expected to know how to write. Some classic and actual article types are similar. Others were born recently, such as smartphone or video game reviews. If this is a very broad…
biotech
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How do journalists prepare to cover unfamiliar fields?

When journalists get an assignment to interview someone in an industry they aren’t familiar with, or write on a new topic, how do they familiarise with context-specific vocabulary?
Philip Seyfi
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Can a news article borrow quotes from other publications' articles?

Let's say publication A is writing a feature about a mature story that has already hit the hard news rounds of publications B, C, and D. Can publication A quote interviews from B, C, and D's articles (with attributions, of course)? Example: A John…
Haoheng
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What is the etiquette for regularly meeting with potential sources for articles that may not be published?

Would it be acceptable to regularly meet with potential sources for interviews that may end up remaining unpublished indefinitely, or could such a habit be impolite? Clearly there is tremendous value in being able to use whatever raw material one…
TLDR
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Is this writing pattern called an attribution?

I had posted this question under "academic-writing" and on there someone believes that it might be called "attribution". Can anyone confirm if this is correct or where I can find a reference? Original Question: I'm curious to know if this style of…
M4cJunk13
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When a newspaper references itself?

There is a very specific professional term for the occurrence of a newspaper referencing itself as a source (e.g., in an historical report), and while I knew it in college, it has been apparently been overwritten in my brain with lyrics from The…
user30267
1
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1 answer

Where Do Online Journalists Get Their Info?

How do online journalists report on things if they aren't actually out in the field reporting? I'm assuming they simply watch mainstream news, listen to government/organizational websites, etc?
tacoma
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