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.

Naomi Goldsmith delivering gender training to female journalists in Tanzania

Gender equality in the media

Image to illustrate an off-the-record briefing created by Gemini AI

Interviewing ‘off the record’

Image by Rafael Anderson Gonzales Mendoza released via Creative Commons CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Journalism and the public interest

Mobile journalism training Harare, Zimbabwe. Image shared via Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 4.0

Citizen reporting to citizen journalism

This article was written for a group of young citizen reporters from remote rural communities in Zimbabwe who were learning how to become journalists.

Word Power graphic by Media Helping Media released under Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 4.0

The power of words

Journalists need to understand the power of using the right words when writing news stories

Image by Symic released under Creative Commons CC BY-SA 2.0

Preparing for an interview

A journalist needs to be well-prepared when planning an interview. However, after all your research, try to keep the interview to three questions in order to avoid over-complication and confusion.

Image by Brandon Anderson released via Creative Commons CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Crime reporting for beginners

Journalists reporting about crime must balance the public's right to know with ethical considerations, ensuring accuracy, fairness, and sensitivity

Using the right words

Words are the essential tools of journalism. They convey meaning and help the audience understand the issues we are covering. So they need to be used properly.

Image of a journalist researching created using Imagen 3 - created by David Brewer of MHM

SIFT for fact-checking

Journalists who are committed to fact-checking, as we should all be, have several methods available to help them deal with fake news.

Graphic of a construction kit and instructions created using Google Gemini AI

Creating a structured news report

Writing a news item without a plan is like building a kit without instructions. You need a structured story plan to order your facts logically and engage readers.