This lesson plan is designed to help trainers teach students how to seek out new angles on a breaking, developing or running news story.
It’s based on the article How to find and develop important news angles which we suggest you read before adapting for your own purposes.
Introduction to news angles
This one-day course is designed to help journalists move beyond surface-level reporting. By focusing on the MHM principles of identifying unique perspectives, trainers will guide participants through the process of finding the most important and relevant angle for any given story. The goal is to ensure news remains impactful, original, and audience-focused.
Sessions timetable
09:00–10:00 – Session 1: Defining the news angle
- Aims: To understand what a news angle is and why it is critical for effective journalism.
- Presentation: Explain that a news angle is the specific focus or lens through which a story is told. Discuss how a single event can have multiple angles depending on the audience.
- Activity: Present a basic fact (e.g., a new local tax is announced) and ask participants to brainstorm five different groups of people it might affect.
- Discussion: Why does a story need a sharp focus rather than a general overview?
10:00–11:00 – Session 2: Identifying the most important element
- Aims: To learn how to prioritise information based on impact and relevance.
- Presentation: Use the MHM guidance on looking for the most unusual, significant, or human element of a story.
- Activity: Provide three raw news releases. Participants must underline the most important sentence in each and justify why that is the lead.
- Discussion: How do we decide what is important for our specific audience compared to a global audience?
11:00–11:15 – Break
11:15–12:45 – Session 3: Developing the angle through research and questioning
- Aims: To use investigative techniques to find hidden angles.
- Presentation: Cover the importance of the Who, What, Where, When, Why, and How, but with a focus on ‘so what?‘
- Activity: Participants are given a brief scenario about a local hospital closure. They must draft five in-depth questions that would reveal a non-obvious angle (e.g., impact on local transport or property prices).
- Discussion: When does a follow-up question turn a routine story into an exclusive?
12:45–13:45 – Lunch
13:45–15:00 – Session 4: Sourcing and diverse perspectives
- Aims: To understand how different sources can change the direction of a story.
- Presentation: Discuss the danger of relying solely on official voices. Explain how talking to real people can shift the news angle to a human-interest focus.
- Activity: Role-play exercise. One participant acts as an official spokesperson, another as an affected citizen. The rest of the group must identify the two different angles emerging from the interviews.
- Discussion: How do we balance official facts with personal lived experiences?
15:00–15:15 – Break
15:15–16:15 – Session 5: Adapting angles for different platforms.
- Aims: To learn how to tweak a news angle for broadcast, print, online, and social media.
- Presentation: Briefly explain how a visual angle works for TV/Instagram versus a data-heavy angle for long-form print.
- Activity: Take one news angle developed in Session 3 and write three different headlines for it: one for X (formerly Twitter), one for a radio bulletin, and one for a front-page splash.
- Discussion: Does the core truth of the story change when we change the angle for a platform?
16:15–17:00 – Session 6: Ethics and accuracy in angle selection.
- Aims: To ensure that pursuing a strong angle does not lead to sensationalism or bias.
- Presentation: Focus on the ethical responsibility of a journalist to remain fair while being interesting.
- Activity: Review a list of sensationalist headlines. Participants must rewrite them to be engaging but ethically sound and accurate.
- Discussion: Where is the line between a strong angle and a misleading one?
Assignment
Participants are required to find a news story from the day’s local headlines that they feel has been covered with a boring or standard angle. They must research the topic further and write a 300-word pitch for a fresh, important angle that has not yet been explored, identifying at least two new sources they would contact.
Materials needed
- Flipchart and markers
- Printed copies of the MHM article
- Sample press releases and local newspapers
- Notepads and pens
- Internet access for research
Assessment
- Participation: Active involvement in brainstorming and role-play sessions.
- Performance: Ability to identify a unique and relevant angle in the final assignment.
- Clarity: Demonstration of the ability to write sharp, focused headlines and leads.
Summary
This lesson plan provides a structured approach to identifying, developing, and refining news angles based on the principles of high-quality journalism. By the end of the day, trainers will have equipped participants with the tools to produce more engaging and relevant content for their audiences.
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