Basics
Our basics section provides foundational knowledge for journalists starting their careers and for those wanting to refresh their skills. Learn techniques including news writing, interviewing, story structure, and reporting practices that form the bedrock of quality journalism. All our material is free to download, adapt and use. Scroll down our site map for all the content in this and other sections.
Shoe-leather reporting
Despite the influx of digital information, the foundational skills of "shoe-leather reporting", involving direct contact, investigation, and verification, remain essential for journalists in the modern newsroom.
News sources and the ‘so what’ factor
Every news story needs at least one reliable source that is able to share information that helps the journalist get to the facts.
How to succeed as a journalist
Journalists should be accurate, first with news, trusted, easy to understand, straight, aware, disciplined and realistic.
Reporting from conflict zones
When reporting from a conflict zone a journalist needs to be sensitive, understand history and cultural issues, and put people first
How to create a structured news report
This module was written for trainee journalists in Zimbabwe who were keen to learn how to produce in-depth video reports about life in their remote rural communities.
Introduction to interviews
The interview is one of the basic tools of journalism. You cannot be a good journalist without being a good interviewer and a careful listener.
How to carry out an interview remotely
Here we look at some of the important issues journalists face when interviewing sources in another location via electronic media rather than face-to-face and in real time.
The questions every journalist should ask
There are six questions that journalists should consider asking. They are What? Why? When? How? Where? and Who?
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How to make a documentary
A free step-by-step guide for journalists who want to learn how to make documentaries.
When a ‘big story’ breaks
Big stories happen out of the blue. And when they do newsrooms have to spring into action immediately.
Tool: The Content Value Matrix
In this article we look at the 'content value matrix, a tool designed to help media managers prioritise effort and resources on the stories that really matter to the target audience.







