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Basic journalism

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.

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Developing and handling news sources

News sources are vital for journalists to find essential stories. Without reliable information, reporters would be left staring at a blank page.
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Clichés, journalese, and jargon

Journalists need to recognise and then avoid using journalese, jargon, and clichés. Their writing must be clear, easy to understand, and informative.
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Journalism’s roles and responsibilities

Journalism demands a diverse skill set across various roles. Explore the different tasks and career paths available to modern journalists in our guide.
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Writing a radio news script

Radio journalists must write clear scripts that weave together compelling audio clips, ensuring listeners understand a news story's significance.
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Interviewing for video journalists

Tips about the steps a video journalist can take to enhance the quality of filmed interviews.
Image by Tessa Kavanagh from Pixabay

Translation in journalism

If you are a journalist working in a multilingual society, you may have to work in more than one language.
Photo by Brett Jordan on Unsplash

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.
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Fact-checking and adding context

An essential part of the editorial process is to examine everything we are told to make sure it is factual.
Boris Johnson interviewed by Anna Tsekouras 2014 - image by David Poultney released under Creative Commons

The power of quotes in journalism

Quotes can define an era, a person, or a story. Used thoughtfully, they transform reporting from factual to memorable, from clear to compelling.
The inverted pyramid in journalism

The inverted pyramid

The inverted pyramid model puts key news first, followed by supporting details, with the least important background information at the base of the article.

Developing news sense

How do we know what is news? There are millions of things going on in the world all the time and only some of them become news stories.
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In journalism, good writing is plain writing

The purpose of news writing is to convey meaning clearly and effortlessly by using precise, comprehensible, and easily digestible words.
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