Wednesday, November 19, choosing your news story topics

Learning Target: I can analyze my perspective news story for the 5 w's and h of news writing, so as to organize the steps I need to write a successful story.

Assignment: due by the end of class on Tuesday, November 25  Your own news stories. General directions: 250-300 word maximum

                                              unbiased!

                                              solid lead

                                              at least one quote

                                              headline  (watch capitalization rules!)

                                              no passive voice

                                          punctuation / grammar
                                          remember this is not an essay; you have very small paragraphs. See models at the end of the blog.

            All news stories must be posted on the blog.

Are you getting it right? Read the rubric and grade yourself!

Topic choices below: see me, if you have another idea. Due today. Post to the blog with your name, your story selection with six questions relating to the 5 W's and H. 

For example: Parker

   I have decided to write a story about male students' footwear.

   Who: Senior male students at SOTA (I've decided to narrow my topic)

     What: check out a dozen pairs of footwear; note colors / brands. I need to do some background research.

     When: I need to talk to three people. Do they wear the same shoes everyday? Get some quotes; make sure I spell their names correctly.

       Where: where do they purchase footwear? malls? independent shops? on-line? Goodwill?     

          Why: Why these styles? 

           How: How do they feel in wearing this footwear? Identify with someone? Personal identity? 

              

There will be duplicates; that's fine. All news articles must be posted to the blog by the end of class on Tuesday. If you are having problems, you'll know when you post today. I suggest you create a word document and copy and paste, so as not to lose your work. 

Suggestions

parking woes

college application pressures

traffic tickets

body art

cliques

sports / teams at SOTA- this can be broken down into subtopics

volunteerism at SOTA- this can be broken down into subtopic

school security: morning scanning / during the day

riding the bus

lunch excursions

bumper stickers

measuring up to an older sibling

passing time in the hall

detention

electronics

personalizing a locker

part time jobs

tardy / absenteeism

hair styles: male / female

behind the scene: theatre / teching, etc

life as a middle schooler

senior economics

vending machines

fashion: male / female---choose an item
the reality of senior year (economic / social / frustrations / fears)

have you an idea for something more serious?

 Rubric for evaluating inverted pyramid stories

Ace reporter	Good	Fair	Poor
This story — so professional one would think it were cut from a professional news publication — convincingly demonstrates mastery of the inverted pyramid form by doing the following: ❍ with precision, arranges the key facts of the story from most important to least important ❍ relegates background information — information the writer could have known before the event — to a place below all new information ❍ is devoid of unattributed opinion ❍ artfully illustrates points with interesting, well-punctuated and well-attributed quotations; a transition is used to introduce each quotation. ❍ is a model of brevity, using few words to maximum effect. ❍ avoids passive voice except in the rare cases when it is merited ❍  shows few, if any, errors in the conventions of written English	This solid inverted pyramid story, while not as impressive as that written by the Ace Reporter, consistently does most or all of the following: ❍ arranges the key facts of the story from most important to least important ❍ generally relegates background information — information the writer could have known before the event — to a place below all new information ❍ is devoid of unattributed opinion ❍ illustrates points with interesting, well-punctuated and well-attributed quotations; a transition is used to introduce each quotation ❍ is for the most part concise ❍ generally avoids passive voice except in the rare cases when it is merited ❍  shows few, if any, errors in the conventions of written English.	This story suggests general awareness of the requirements for an inverted pyramid story, but does not suggest great prowess in meeting those requirements. This lead does much or all of the following:   ❍ unconvincingly arranges the facts of the story from most important to least important ❍ in some cases, fails to keep background information in its place at the bottom of the story ❍ may include minor unattributed opinion ❍ sometimes illustrates points with quotations but may do so awkwardly and without adequate transitions or ❍ shows too little attention to the need for brevity ❍ may slip into passive voice ❍  shows some errors in the conventions of written English.	These story doesn’t meaningfully address the assignment. This lead does much or all of the following: ❍ either does not have all the basic facts or shows clear errors in organizing them from most to least important ❍ fails to keep background information in its place at the bottom of the story ❍ is bereft of meaningful, supportive quotations; may fail to introduce quotations at all ❍ includes significant unattributed opinion ❍ noticeable over-use of the passive voice ❍ is wordy ❍  shows multiple errors in the conventions of written English. (Note: The fact that a person is speaking to students is not in and of itself newsworthy; stories should focus on what a person says, not the fact that he/she has spoken.)

EXAMPLE NEWS STORY

Snowstorm, Frigid Temperatures Whack over Half of the U.S., More Coming

By Ray Sanchez and Faith Karimi, CNN

Snowstorms and record low temperatures whacked much of the country this week -- and there's more havoc coming Wednesday.

About 50% of the country had snow on the ground Tuesday,according to the National Weather Service.New York, one of the hardest-hit, is buried under 6 feet of snow -- and counting.

"This storm is basically a knife that went right through the heart of Erie County," Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz said. "I can't remember and I don't think anyone else can remember this much snow falling in this short a period."Another blast of cold air will hammer the Midwest and Northeast on Wednesday while the Southeast could see record lows as temperatures drop into the teens and 20s.

Snow fatalities

At least four people were killed in the storm.

One of the storm-related deaths was a car accident, Erie County officials said. Three others were cardiac arrests the resulted from shoveling.

Some places have seen more than 5 feet of snow while others could see 7 1/2 feet more after another round of wintry weather hits this week.

The equivalent of a year's worth of snow is going to pound some areas over a three-day period, Poloncarz said.

"It's probably heavier than anything that we have seen in over 40 years, so it's going to take some time to dig out," Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown said.

Trapped at the police station

The snow left people stranded in cars and turned roadways into parking lots. It also forced residents to seek shelter in unusual places.

About 20 people took refuge at a fire station and 20 others holed up in a police station Tuesday night, authorities said.

And as they waited, those at the fire station got a teeny weeny gift.

A baby girl was delivered there when an ambulance was unable to take her mother to the hospital, Buffalo Fire Commissioner Garnell Whitfield said.

"She was born, she's safe and she's healthy," Whitfield said.

Trapped for over a day

New York state troopers rescued the Niagara University women's basketball team early Wednesday after it got stuck on a bus for more than 24 hours due to a snowstorm.

"We're really tired and really ready to be home," head coach Kendra Faustin said after the rescue.

The team sat on the side of a highway, unable to move, for more than 24 hours. It was on its way home from a game in Pittsburgh when it got stuck.

In a Skype interview with CNN's Don Lemon before the rescue, the coach explained how they got trapped.

"The roads weren't plowed. It got really bad really fast," Faustin said. "I'm assuming that somebody in the front of the line got stuck and everybody else had to stop, and that's how we got where we are."

For hours, she said, the snow was coming down so hard that they couldn't see anything surrounding the bus.

"It seems to be getting better, (it's) what we're hoping," she said. "But more importantly we're just hoping to get on the move."

Buffalo's not alone

All 50 states registered temperatures below freezing Tuesday morning.

Traditionally warm states were not spared, either. Temperatures at Mauna Kea on Hawaii's Big Island dipped to 31 degrees while Florida's Panhandle was in the upper 20s, with freeze warnings in effect.

And it's not over: Another surge of cold air will likely hit the Midwest and Northeast from Wednesday to Thursday. The Southeast could see record lows Wednesday morning as temperatures drop into the teens and 20s.

The cause of this mayhem: Arctic air pouring over the relatively warm Great Lakes waters is producing extreme lake-effect snows.

Lancaster, New York, has already received over 40 inches of snow, and it continues to snow 4 to 5 inches per hour.

Nationwide record

Tuesday was the coldest November morning since 1976, according to meteorologist Ryan Maue of WeatherBELL Analytics. The average overnight low for the Lower 48 states was 19.4 degrees Fahrenheit.

That's unusual for this time of year, and is much more reminiscent of a pattern forecasters would expect to see in January or February.

In Buffalo area, a state of emergency is under effect, including a travel ban for 19 municipalities. Only emergency vehicles are allowed to travel.