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.

Image by WP Paarz released via Creative Commons CC BY-SA 2.0

Court reporting for beginners

Learn essential court reporting tips for beginners, covering legal constraints, accuracy, and how to report trial verdicts fairly and professionally.
Graphic for a Media Helping Media Training Tool

Tool: MHM Story Builder

The Media Helping Media’s Story Builder is a simple tool created to help those who are new to journalism write informative news articles.
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.
Image by Silent Model TV released via Creative Commons CC BY-NC-SA 2.00

What editors look for when hiring

What's the best preparation for a career in journalism? Media Helping Media asked some experts in the field what they look for when hiring staff.
Image by pixy.org released via Creative Commons

The questions every journalist should ask

There are six questions that journalists should consider asking. They are What? Why? When? How? Where? and Who?
Image by Allissa Richardson released via Creative Commons CC BY 2.0

Interviewing for video journalists

Tips about the steps a video journalist can take to enhance the quality of filmed interviews.
The reference books used to create this page - image by David Brewer of MHM

Words that are frequently misused

It's essential for journalists to maintain precision in their use of language, especially when dealing with words that sound or look similar but which carry different meanings.

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.
Image of journalists at a Fojo Media Institute training session

What is news?

What is news? Beyond facts, it’s the stories that truly matter to people. Explore why human interest and personal relevance are at the heart of every headline.
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.
Image by woodleywonderworks released under Creative Commons

Attribution and plagiarism

Producing a piece of original journalism involves uncovering facts that, had it not been for you, would have remained hidden.
Image of a journalist researching created using Imagen 3 - created by David Brewer of MHM

Lateral reading for journalists

Lateral reading is a core journalism skill. Learn what it is, how it differs from vertical reading, and how to apply it to fact-checking.
Load more

Hosted by the Fojo Media Institute

Fojo logoMedia Helping Media is hosted by the Fojo Media Institute at Linnaeus University.

Follow Media Helping Media on Facebook

MHM on FacebookCheck our Facebook page for regular updates from Media Helping Media.

Content released under Creative Commons

Creative Commons logoThe content on Media Helping Media (MHM) is released via Creative Commons BY NC SA 4.0.