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writing_the_context_story.pdf

 writing_the_context_story.pdf

Context stories are news stories that put events in context by answering the why and how questions. These stories help readers understand how news relates to their everyday lives.

Transcript

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  2. Writing the context story
    Tommy Thomason

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  3. It’s not newspapers that
    have changed.
    It’s readers.

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  4. More competition for attention

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  5. More competition for attention
    Skimmers and scanners

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  6. More competition for attention
    Skimmers and scanners
    More sources of news

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  7. More competition for attention
    Skimmers and scanners
    More sources of news
    Less sense of obligation to consume
    certain types of stories

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  8. More competition for attention
    Skimmers and scanners
    More sources of news
    Less sense of obligation to consume
    certain types of stories
    More likely to look for personal
    connection to news or at least
    something that sparks their interest or
    answers a question they have always had

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  9. A brief history of journalism

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  10. A brief history of journalism
    News in
    colonial
    America
    News in
    the Penny
    Press Era
    News in the
    late 1800s
    News with
    competitors
    News now

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  12. The 5 w’s have been replaced by…

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  13. Why?
    The 5 w’s have been replaced by…

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  14. Why? How?
    The 5 w’s have been replaced by…

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  15. Why? How?
    So
    what?
    The 5 w’s have been replaced by…

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  16. Finding and writing context stories

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  17. Finding and writing context stories
    Begin with the event, but look for implications – the so
    what?

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  18. Finding and writing context stories
    And remember that
    the event may not be
    an event at all, but a
    trend

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  19. Rob Albericci saw the curve coming. He saw
    his son Austin’s Little League baseball team
    struggle to recruit enough kids to fill a roster.
    He saw the rising demands of Austin’s
    football team, the growing pressure for kids
    to focus on a single sport, to specialize even
    before they hit puberty. And he saw a sharp
    swerve in his son’s passion.
    The father tried to steer his son toward
    sticking with baseball — because the injury
    risk is lower than in football, because
    baseball is “a thinking man’s game,” and
    because baseball is how father and son first
    bonded over sports. “I threw with him,” the
    father says, and he looks at his muscular son
    with a softness reserved for the littlest of
    boys. “I’d take him to cages and throw and
    hit. He always wanted to bunt.”
    Baseball is
    struggling to
    hook kids – and
    risks losing fans
    to other sports

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  20. Finding and writing context stories
    Begin with the event, but look for implications – the so
    what?
    Look for historical context or background

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  21. Finding and writing context stories
    Begin with the event, but look for implications – the so
    what?
    Look for historical context or background
    Look for trends behind events

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  22. Finding and writing context stories
    Begin with the event, but look for implications – the so
    what?
    Look for historical context or background
    Look for trends behind events
    Reporting Step 1: Talk to people and get different
    perspectives

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  23. Finding and writing context stories
    Begin with the event, but look for implications – the so
    what?
    Look for historical context or background
    Look for trends behind events
    Reporting Step 1: Talk to people and get different
    perspectives
    Identify the issue behind the event

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  24. Finding and writing context stories
    Begin with the event, but look for implications – the so
    what?
    Look for historical context or background
    Look for trends behind events
    Reporting Step 1: Talk to people and get different
    perspectives
    Identify the issue behind the event
    Reporting Step 2: Look for stories – find the story in the
    issue

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  25. Finding and writing context stories
    Begin with the event, but look for implications – the so
    what?
    Look for historical context or background
    Look for trends behind events
    Reporting Step 1: Talk to people and get different
    perspectives
    Identify the issue behind the event
    Reporting Step 2: Look for stories – find the story in the
    issue
    Do focused reporting

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  26. Finding and writing context stories
    Begin with the event, but look for implications – the so
    what?
    Look for historical context or background
    Look for trends behind events
    Reporting Step 1: Talk to people and get different
    perspectives
    Identify the issue behind the event
    Reporting Step 2: Look for stories – find the story in the
    issue
    Do focused reporting
    Think multi-platform

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  27. Finding and writing context stories
    And remember, there are levels of context stories:
    A few sentences of historical context
    Brief explanations
    A whole story devoted to context
    Context features, where you introduce readers to
    people who are affected by events

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