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Resources for training journalists
I’ll be leading an #ASNEchat about newsroom training today at 2 p.m. Eastern time, 11 a.m. Pacific. We’ll discuss a variety of challenges and opportunities in newsroom training during an exciting and...
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Grammar matters
Even professional writers have difficulty with some grammar points. Grammar matters in any writing format, including tweets and other social platforms. I won’t try to cover everything here, but I’ll...
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Make every word count: Tips for polishing and tightening copy
Reporters and editors everywhere battle and complain over length of stories. Even online, where newspaper space or tight broadcast schedules aren’t an issue, you need to write tightly to hold the...
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Developing timeless skills for constantly changing journalism careers
Journalists learn (or could be learning if we took the time) about new tools almost weekly. As I started writing this Sunday morning, I had already learned about a couple new tools this week:...
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Slides and links for workshops at Southern Regional Press Institute
I am leading some workshops for the Southern Regional Press Institute at Savannah State University today. I participated in a panel discussion on “Ethics, Urgency and Accuracy” this morning. Here are...
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Using Story Elements: an updated writing workshop handout
This is an updated writing workshop handout from one of the workshops I first presented in the 1990s, about using story elements. An earlier version of this handout was posted on the No Train, No Gain...
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Writing as You Report: an updated workshop handout
Few techniques helped me more when I was a reporter than when I learned the value of writing as I reported. It challenged my discipline, but when I succeeded at incorporating writing into my reporting...
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Beat reporting: Mastering the topic or territory you cover
This is an update of a workshop handout I developed more than a decade ago. The Omaha World-Herald had a newsroom reorganization in the early 2000s that gave many reporters new beats. I was writing...
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Developing and cultivating sources
This is an updated version of a handout for a reporting workshop I used to present more than a decade ago. I have updated it for my Advanced News Gathering class this semester at LSU’s Manship School...
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Tips on covering events
I’m teaching my Media Writing class about event coverage today. So here are some tips on event coverage: Prepare Before the event, learn what you can about what’s going to happen. A sporting event...
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